BNT has traced the activities of driving licence brokers in the Czech Republic following the fatal crash on Chelopechene Road, after which 4 people died. A court has imposed the strictest pre-trial detention measure on the second driver detained in connection with the tragedy, but did not accept that he had taken part in a street race due to insufficient evidence. Yesterday, his friend, Vasil Filipov, was also released without a detention measure, despite allegedly crashing his car into a public transport bus at 150 km/h, killing four people.
How did the two men obtain driving licences issued in the Czech Republic? And why has the scheme for acquiring such licences operated unhindered for years?
The devastating crash on Chelopechene Road has brought renewed attention to the practice of individuals lacking the required educational qualifications obtaining driving licences in countries where completion of a certain level of schooling is not mandatory. This appears to be the case with the two men accused of causing the crash that claimed four lives in Sofia.
BNT team investigated the practice and uncovered numerous social media advertisements offering “assistance” in obtaining Czech driving licences.
Under Czech law, applicants must be at least 18 years old, possess a valid medical certificate and have resided in the country for at least six months. Notably, once a Czech driving licence has been issued, it can be replaced with a Bulgarian one without the need to present proof of education desgree.
The intermediaries involved allegedly provide not only fraudulent residency documents but also interpreters for the theory test who effectively feed candidates the correct answers.
BNT found one such intermediary in a Facebook group dedicated to life and work in the Czech Republic. In the comments, individuals stated that they were unable to obtain a licence in Bulgaria because of the requirement to have completed 10th grade [first stage of high school], but assure they could read and write. The same individual, using two separate profiles, answers them and leaves telephone numbers for contact. Attempts to reach him were unsuccessful, as all numbers had been closed.
BNT team found another individual who claims to have been defrauded by brokers operating under the same scheme. As a warning to others, he published photographs of the intermediaries, including one image showing a man holding a driving licence.
“Friends, be careful of these fraudsters. They promise driving licences, demand payment in advance and then do nothing.”
Similar schemes have been uncovered by Czech authorities on several occasions. In 2017, Bulgarian and Czech organised crime investigators dismantled four counterfeit document printing operations in Prague and Brno, producing fake documents including driving licences. Four Bulgarian nationals were arrested, and investigators alleged that the operation was directed by an Albanian citizen based in Bucharest.
According to the Association for the Qualification of Motorists in Bulgaria, the introduction of the Grade 10 education requirement in 2017 prompted many people to seek alternative routes in countries such as the Czech Republic, Cyprus and the United Kingdom.
Krasimir Georgiev, Association for the Qualification of Motorists in Bulgaria:
“This scheme is used by many people from different ethnic backgrounds, including ethnic Bulgarians.”
Unofficially, a licence obtained through illegal channels can cost between €4,000 and €5,000. Fraudsters exploit loopholes in legislation and, in some cases, resort to bribing public officials.
The role of intermediaries is to arrange fictitious addresses to demonstrate the required period of residence in the country. Interpreters involved in the scheme are also present during the theory examination.
Krasimir Georgiev:
“The interpreter, in exchange for a fee, tells them the correct answer while translating the questions.”
Experts say it is difficult to determine how many licences have been obtained in this way.
Ivan Savov, Criminologist: What needs to be done is to pay closer attention to driving licence checks over a longer period and to carry out targeted inspections. For example, in segregated neighbourhoods, among minority communities, and in parts of north-eastern Bulgaria such as Shumen, Novi Pazar and Razgrad. These are places where they are found in large numbers."
When a driving licence issued by another European Union member state is exchanged for a Bulgarian licence, the Ministry of the Interior does not require proof of completed education.
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Four people died and 12 others were injured following a high-speed street race on Chelopeshko Shose in Sofia. Two cars racing at speeds exceeding 140-150 km/h caused a city transport bus to crash. The subsequent impact caused one of the cars to catch fire inside the bus and the other to strike a nearby bus shelter.
Investigators determined that two racing vehicles—traveling at speeds estimated between 140 km/h and 150 km/h—were at fault.
Bus line 119 was turning left towards Chelopechene. One racing car crashed directly into the bus, while the second racing car attempted to avoid the collision, mounted the curb, took out a bus stop, and was torn in half upon hitting a tree.
Two bus passengers died at the scene, and two other victims later succumbed to their injuries at St. Anna and St. Ekaterina hospitals. Twelve others were injured, with multiple patients rushed to Pirogov, Military Medical Academy (MMA), and ISUL hospitals.
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