site.btaCourt Overturns Lom Mayor's Suspension over Vote-Buying Charges

The Montana District Court overturned a lower court ruling that had temporarily suspended Lom Mayor Tsvetan Petrov from office, rejecting prosecutors' request to bar him from carrying out his duties.

Petrov was charged with allegedly offering EUR 50 each to 21 employees of the municipal sanitation company in the northwestern town of Lom on April 15 in his capacity as a public official, with the aim of inducing them to cast their votes in favour of a specific political party and candidate for Parliament in the general election held on April 19.

Prosecutors had sought Petrov's suspension from office, but the court found there were insufficient grounds for such a measure at this stage of the investigation.

According to the court, there was no evidence that the mayor had obstructed the investigation, exerted pressure on witnesses or attempted to conceal evidence. It also noted that all key witnesses in the case had already been questioned and that some of the expert reports had been completed. On these grounds, the court ruled that Petrov's removal from office was unnecessary and overturned the lower court's decision.

The Montana District Court's judgment is unappealable.