Alexander Metodiev, an MP from the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), also known as Bat Sali, was found guilty by Sofia City Court on 16th of January. On the charge for unlawful obstruction of police, the court issued a suspended sentence for a period of 6 months with 3 years of probation. Metodiev was sentenced to pay a fine of 3,000 BGN on the charge for hooliganism.
The sentence is subject to appeal.
According to the prosecution, on 1st of May 2016, while driving to the town of Kostenets, the MP violated road traffic rules because he triple overtook other cars in a no-overtaking zone, did not stop after police officers displayed a hand-held stop sign and tried to exercise pressure on the Head of the local police station to not issue a penalty ticket.
Later, at the same place, police stopped a minibus and requested the identity documents of the passengers.
Metodiev threatened police officers to “fire” them, because they stopped a minibus with “his people”, the football team of Roma people from the town of Samokov, for a check and issued a penalty ticket to one of them, who did not have ID documents (not carrying ID documents is against the law in Bulgaria).
On 7th of July 2016, Bulgaria’s Chief Prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov filed a request to the National Assembly seeking to lift the immunity of the MP.
On 11th of July 2016, Aleksandar Metodiev gave up his immunity from criminal prosecution and filed a written consent to the National Assembly for his immunity to be lifted.
In September 2016, the Prosecutor’s Office lodged an indictment against Metodiev.
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