Vesselin Petrov, head of Interior Ministry's National Police Service (NPS), has resigned from office on May 19 2008, the ministry said in a statement on its website. Petrov is due to meet Interior Minister Mihail Mikov to discuss the resignation, according to the statement.

Other than that, no other information was given to the media and Petrov reportedly did not return phone calls. Until the meeting takes place, Petrov will continue to exercise his duties.

Before taking the position as head of NPS Vesselin Petrov was head of the police in Varna on the Black Sea. He came to Sofia in 2008 to take over as head of the NPS from Valentin Petrov (no relation), who was promoted by former minister Roumen Petkov to the post of the ministry's chief secretary.

Petrov's resignation is the last of many changes within the ministry's top-level personnel.

It started with Roumen Petkov resigned from the post of Interior Minister in April after immense pressure from both Bulgarian media and the public which followed his words that eh has held meeting with controversial business while they were under police investigation.

Mihail Mikov, Bulgarian Socialist Party floor leader in Parliament, was appointed as minister.

On May 19 Bulgaria's Prosecutor-General Boris Velchev said he would ask Parliament to lift the immunity from prosecution on Petkov. The request comes as a result of the probe into information leaks at the ministry, launched by Sofia prosecutors last week, Velchev said.

Shortly after Petkov resigned, Valentin Petrov was dismissed from the post of chief secretary of Interior Ministry in connection to the same row and after allegations that he had personally controlled drug smuggling in Bulgaria. A check by the prosecution found nothing of the kind.

After the dismissal of Valentin Petrov, the head of Bourgas police department Pavlin Dimitrov was appointed chief secretary of the ministry.