site.btaSofia Appellate Court Orders House Arrest for Varna Municipal Councillors

The Sofia Appellate Court Thursday placed Varna municipal councillors Yordan Kateliev and Nikolay Stefanov under house arrest and ruled for their immediate release from custody, unless they are held on other grounds.

According to the court, there still is a presumption of involvement in the crimes of which the two are accused, based on witness testimonies, but disagreed with the lower court's finding about a risk that they might commit further offences.

The Sofia City Court left the municipal councillors in custody on October 3.

Kateliev and Stefanov have been charged with participation in an organized criminal group together with Varna Mayor Blagomir Kotsev. They were arrested on July 8 under a police order tied to an investigation by the Anti-Corruption Commission and the Sofia City Prosecution Office, based on a tip-off from a failed public procurement tenderer.

The group is accused of engaging in coordinated criminal activities including abuse of office, bribery and money laundering. Kotsev, Kateliev and Stefanov have been charged with an attempt to extort the equivalent of 15% of a public procurement contract worth BGN 1,523,446 (excluding VAT) for supplying meals to schools and kindergartens.

On September 23, the Sofia Appellate Court left Kotsev in custody. The ruling is unappealable.

The arrests have triggered large-scale protests in Varna, Sofia and other major cities.