site.btaSofia City Prosecution Office Orders Checks into Use of Passenger Name Record Data

The Sofia City Prosecution Office has ordered preliminary checks into allegations concerning the use of Passenger Name Record (PNR) data, following complaints submitted by MPs, lawyers and private citizens, the prosecution service said in a press release on Friday.

The complaints contain various allegations, the prosecution said.

The checks will be carried out by the General Directorate National Police. Once completed, the findings will be submitted to the prosecution office, which will assess whether there is sufficient evidence to open pre-trial proceedings under the Criminal Procedure Code.

The prosecution said all actions would be carried out in accordance with the law and within its statutory powers. It added that the public would be informed of the outcome of the checks in due course.

The case stems from a parliamentary hearing on July 2, when Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev said authorities had established that Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) Chair Delyan Peevski and Constitutional Court Judge Desislava Atanasova had travelled together on a flight to Dubai in 2024.

On July 5, Demerdzhiev said authorities would examine the source of the funds used to pay for Peevski's flights and whether the prices paid reflected market rates.

A day later, the MRF parliamentary group referred what it described as an unprecedented leak and large-scale misuse of personal data involving EU and third-country nationals to Europol and Interpol in what it called the "PNR-gate" case.