The "National Police" Directorate and the "Organized Crime Fighting" Directorate are submitting information to the prosecutor's office today regarding a crime committed under Article 313 of the Penal Code. This was announced by the Acting Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, Chief Commissioner Lyubomir Nikolov, during a briefing at the Council of Ministers dedicated to institutional actions taken against corruption.
One of the key cases uncovered in the process involves a Member of Parliament and political party leader whose declarations are currently under investigation. According to the Acting Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, the individual with parliamentary immunity carried out 36 flights in an aircraft valued at 36 million leva, which was purchased in 2020 by one of the companies participating in public procurement. The aircraft has since been transferred to a Maltese company, prompting requests for information from Maltese authorities as well. As a result of the investigation, 36 invoices totaling 5 million leva were identified, paid by the company that owns the aircraft. "We conducted a check of the declarations of the individual—a Member of Parliament and political party leader," Nikolov emphasized, adding that these expenses were declared neither as transport costs nor as gifts for performing the flights in question.
In just one year, these companies have absorbed state resources exceeding 400 million euros. Audits conducted within the Ministry of Interior and the Ministry of Innovation and Digital Transformation (MIDT) revealed that four companies hold 99.5% of all orders related to the construction and installation of mantinels. Although they ostensibly create a circle of competitors, these firms are actually linked through the same owners or through owners in familial relationships.
Currently, the Ministry of Interior is working on over 900 reports of corruption-related crimes, 500 of which are directly linked to violations of the Public Procurement Act.
The uncovered schemes involving the misappropriation of massive state funds directly impact the distribution of public resources and budgetary capacities across the entire country, including the region.
These measures follow the intentions declared by Prime Minister Rumen Radev, according to which compromised public procurements and internal transfers will be audited, and checks will be conducted on proxy persons as part of the comprehensive fight against corruption.