Police detained 13 people in Haskovo region in the past 24 hours during a special operation, the press office of the Haskovo regional police directorate (ODMVR) said. Officers opened three pre-trial cases and five fast-track cases.
The previous operation began on the eve of the first round of the presidential and vice-presidential election. Together, the two operations led to 22 detentions on 20 and 21 October.
Where it began: Police detain 12 people in Haskovo ahead of election
Officers from the criminal, economic and security police and the Zonal Gendarmerie Directorate took part in the new operation. They checked shops, pawnshops, currency exchange offices and quick-loan firms, as well as people believed to have money that could be used to buy votes. Checkpoints were set up on key roads in and out of the area.
In a shop in Haskovo's Republika district, police detained two men, aged 18 and 27. They found 19 foil wraps holding a brown powder, 20 grams in all. A field drug test showed fentanyl.
Officers also seized 226 vape devices, 1,250 grams of hookah tobacco with no excise stamp and a bottle holding 640 grams of nitrous oxide at the shop.
In Haskovo, Svilengrad and Harmanli, police detained four more people, aged between 15 and 32, over drugs. They seized a total of 8.5 grams of marijuana, 3.09 grams of methamphetamine, 2 grams of crystals for smoking and 43 kilograms of dried bundles with the typical smell of cannabis. Police also caught drivers under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
In a shop on Hristo Danov Street in Dimitrovgrad, officers from the district police department seized 75 textile items bearing logos of protected trademarks.
In the village of Dolno Belevo, officers found a distillation system and 160 litres of liquid smelling of ethyl alcohol in an outbuilding in a private yard. A 65-year-old man lives in the yard. The owner of the property has not shown documents proving that excise duty was paid.