site.btaInterior Minister Alerts Acting Prosecutor General Over Delays in Road Construction Investigation

Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev has alerted acting Prosecutor General Vanya Stefanova over delays in a pre-trial investigation concerning road construction, advance payments and in-house procurement procedures worth tens of millions of euro, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.

The investigation, launched in 2022, concerns the construction of the E-79 international road between Montana and Vidin (Northwestern Bulgaria). An advance payment was made in 2020, but construction has yet to begin, the ministry said. The case is being investigated by the General Directorate Combating Organized Crime.

Demerdzhiev has raised concerns over a change of the supervising prosecutor, delays in the investigation and the lack of a clear timeline for its completion. He also pointed to the absence of individuals charged in the case and called on Stefanova to expedite the investigation.

In late July, Prime Minister Rumen Radev also called on the prosecution service to step up its work on cases flagged by the Interior Ministry and security services.