Sat, Feb 11 2012

First former cabinet minister to face charges

Tue, Sep 08 2009 10:42 CET

byPetar Kostadinov

1094 Views 1 Comment
First former cabinet minister to face charges

Valeri Tsvetanov

Photo: Assen Tonev

Valeri Tsvetanov, former minister of agriculture, and Stefan Youroukov, former head of the State Forestry Agency, will be charged with signing land swap deals retroactively against the law, Sofia City prosecutor Nikolai Kokinov told Bulgarian National Television (BNT) on September 8 2009.

According to Focus news agency, Tsvetanov is facing charges in relation to a tip-off which came from former MPs Maria Kapon and Eleonora Nikolova.

The tip-off alleges that Tsvetanov changed the ownership of about 290 acres of agriculture land (owned by a state-owned institute on agriculture in Rousse) so that it could later be sold to a private company. Such deals can only be made by the Council of Ministers,  not the minister.

Tsvetanov and Youroukov will be the first high-ranking officials from the previous government of Sergei Stanishev to face charges. "I have nothing to feel worried about," Tsvetanov told Focus on his way into the National Investigative Service building.

When Boiko Borissov became Prime Minister on July 27 2009 he promised that a number of former cabinet ministers and other officials would face charges.

Kokinov said that in the past five weeks prosecutors have received about 30 serious tip-offs regarding illegal activities in ministries. "We have concentrated our efforts on these tip-offs," he said.

Checks were ongoing in all ministries except the Education Ministry, he said.

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Comments

Anonymous Raptor Tue, Sep 08 2009 11:11 CET
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Why not check the Education Ministry. I paid money over for school uniforms to the School (State Government) and there was no "official receipt"!!


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