site.btaInterior Minister Asks Revenue Agency to Look for Possible Discrepancy between Income, Spending of Movement for Rights and Freedoms Leader

The Interior Minister has sent a tipoff to the National Revenue Agency (NRA) asking it to look into data of hefty spending by Movement for Rights and Freedoms leader Delyan Peevski, the Interior Ministry said Wednesday.

The tipoff follows remarks by Peevski in the corridors of Parliament last Friday and later quoted by his party's press office as follows: "Asked who has paid for his [frequent international] flights, Delyan Peevski said firmly, 'My family and myself have! I am saying this clearly, and I have documents for that. My family and myself have paid for my flights."

Based on 36 invoices showing that a total of EUR 5 million has been spent for these flights, Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev expects the NRA to audit the payments Peevski has made for flights and any related expenses; the period during which these payments were made; the origin of the money that was used; the income that Peevski had declared for the said period; the compliance between the declared income and assets, and the spending, the Ministry said.

Government official announced at a news conference last week that Peevski's international air travel was paid for via shell companies taking money from public procurements for crash barriers. Peevski dismisses the information as allegations and said he paid for the flights himself.

In June 2021, the US Department of the Treasury designated Bulgarian businessman and then-MP Delyan Peevski under the Global Magnitsky sanctions programme for his alleged involvement in corruption. The Treasury said Peevski had used his influence and intermediaries to engage in influence peddling and bribery, including efforts to protect himself from scrutiny and exert control over key institutions and sectors in Bulgaria. The designation, made under Executive Order 13818, resulted in the blocking of Peevski's property and interests in property in the United States and prohibited US persons from conducting transactions with him, subject to applicable exemptions or authorizations. The designation is supposed to have affected Peevski's ability to use banking services.