Prosecutor General Seeks to Lift the Immunity of MPs Kiril Petkov and Bozhidar Bozhanov

Acting Prosecutor General, Borislav Sarafov, has submitted to the 51st National Assembly motivated requests for permission to bring criminal charges against Members of Parliament Kiril Petkov and Bozhidar Bozhanov (both from "We Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria"), based on proposals from the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office. The charges concern two separate criminal offenses committed at different times, the Prosecutor's Office said on February 28.

From May 20, 2022, to June 17, 2022, in Sofia, in his capacity as a public official holding a responsible position – Minister of Electronic Government and contracting authority for a public procurement, Bozhanov violated his official duties under the Law on the Protection of Classified Information, the Regulations for its Implementation, and the internal rules of the Ministry of Electronic Government for public procurement. Bozhanov provided the Executive Director of the Electronic Government Infrastructure Agency with a file on a flash drive, containing a technical specification, and instructed that it be used for the conduct of a public procurement worth nearly 18 million BGN.

The technical specification was prepared in violation of the established procedures designed to ensure the security of the information. This allowed for preferential treatment of a consortium of commercial companies in participating and ranking in the procurement process. According to the evidence gathered by the Sofia city Prosecutor's Office, the purpose was to procure an advantage for another party – to facilitate and provide a competitive edge to the consortium in the public procurement process. The actions could have led to significant harmful consequences, such as the mismanagement of public funds, the creation of conditions for competition violations, the undermining of public trust in the Ministry of Electronic Government, and the endangerment of the cybersecurity of the state administration.

In the proposal to the Chief Prosecutor, the Sofia City Prosecutor's Office notes that in a summary minutes from a commission meeting, which was supposed to review, assess, and rank the offers for the public procurement, the signatures for "Chairman" and "Prepared by" were not placed by the relevant individuals. It was found that the signatures bore partial resemblance to Bozhanov’s handwriting. Evidence was also gathered showing that Bozhanov accessed the computer on which the protocol was technically prepared, using the account of an employee who had been instructed to leave the room while the text was being typed.

With regard to Kiril Petkov, the Prosecutor General's request states that there is sufficient evidence of attempted coercion - a crime under Article 143, Paragraph 1, Item 1, Alternative 2, in conjunction with Article 18, Paragraph 1, Item 2 of the Criminal Code.

On October 2, 2023, in a restaurant in Sofia, Petkov attempted to coerce A.Y., the Minister of Electronic Government, into performing an act against his will. Petkov, in an aggressive tone, told A.Y. that he must consult with Bozhanov whenever he made decisions to dismiss individuals appointed by Bozhanov, as well as for all his actions as a minister, including important strategic matters, the conduct of public procurement, and any contracting procedures. Petkov told him that all important decisions should be made with Bozhanov's prior approval and that he should hold weekly meetings with him. Petkov threatened that otherwise, there would be negative consequences for A.Y. in both his professional and personal life.

The pre-trial proceedings were initiated by a decision from the Sofia City Prosecutor's Office on October 29, 2023, based on information from an investigation commissioned to the Anti-Corruption Commission, following a report by a group of Members of Parliament alleging pressure from Petkov and Bozhanov on the Minister of Electronic Government to award specific companies activities worth 650 million BGN without applying the rules of the Public Procurement Law.

A substantial volume of evidence has been collected in the case, including testimonies from numerous witnesses, relevant documents, expert assessments, and, with the court's permission, traffic data. Materials from an inspection by the State Financial Inspection Agency at the Ministry of Electronic Government, conducted under the SCP's order, and materials from the State Agency for National Security have also been included.

In accordance with Article 70, Paragraph 1 of the Constitution of the Republic of Bulgaria, bringing charges against a Member of Parliament for a criminal offense, requires thewritten consent or approval of the Parliament.