Mayor of Varna, Blagomir Kotsev, Remains in Custody, Court of Appeals Ruled

The Mayor of Varna, Blagomir Kotsev, and municipal councillors Nikolay Stefanov and Yordan Kateliev remain in custody, the Sofia Court of Appeal has ruled.

Businessman Ivaylo Marinov is to be released under a written undertaking not to leave the designated place of residence.

Kotsev, municipal councillors Yordan Kateliev and Nikolay Stefanov, and businessman Ivaylo Marinov have been charged and detained as part of a corruption investigation in the city.

The four are accused of participating in an organised criminal group that operated in Varna from July 2024 until 19 November 2024. The group is alleged to have been established for the purpose of jointly committing official misconduct, bribery, and money laundering. It is said to have been formed for personal gain and involved public officials.

Kotsev, Kateliev, and Stefanov are further accused of having demanded, in August 2024, a sum equivalent to 15% (excluding VAT) of BGN 1,523,446—the value of a public procurement contract for the “Preparation and delivery of ready meals, on a daily basis, for the needs of social services for children and adults under the Varna Municipality, including meals for individuals requiring special dietary regimes”, in exchange for influencing the decision-making of an official in relation to his office.