Former Plovdiv Municipal Councilor Arrested on Suspicion of Vote Buying (PHOTOS)

Former municipal councillor, Ayri Murad, was arrested during a specialised police operation in the Stolipinovo district in Bulgaria's second largest cuty of Plovdiv on March 25. He was taken from his home in handcuffs.

Police found lists of names and a large sum of money in his house. The arrest is on suspicion of violations of the electoral rights of residents in the district, the authorities said. Murad became notoriously known as the first municipal councillor in Plovdiv without a completed secondary education.

He later sat his final school exam and, on his second attempt, progressed to a higher level of education. During the 2015–2019 term, he was also a member of the municipal committee on education, science, religion, and ethnic affairs.