A court in Plovdiv has ordered a 40-year-old man charged over the smuggling of 31,380 kg of marijuana through the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing to stay in custody, the appeal court's press office says. Judges turned down his request for a lighter measure and backed the earlier ruling by Haskovo regional court. The decision is final.
Georgi Zahariev has been held since 27 May, when the Haskovo court granted a request from prosecutors. Officers from Bulgaria's organised crime agency and customs detained him on 22 May during an operation at the border crossing, along with a co-defendant, 46-year-old Ivaylo Kovachev. Five people were detained when the investigation began.
The marijuana was found in vacuum-sealed packs hidden in specially built compartments in a car's seats. The man who drove the car has a history of mental illness.
Judges said the defendant and the crime he is accused of pose a very high risk to the public, and that a lighter measure could let him commit another crime or go into hiding.
The court also said some people linked to the case have not yet been identified, and more evidence still needs to be gathered.