Bulgaria’s former Interior Ministry chief secretary Iliya Iliev was arrested because he had violated ministry regulations in tapping the phone conversations of Ivan Ivanov, the current deputy head of the ministry’s chief directorate for combating organised crime (CDCOC), the Prosecutor-General's Office said on March 26 2008.

Another reason for Iliev's arrest was that, when leaving the ministry last December, he had taken with him a pile of classified documents. Iliev was arrested on March 25 2008 and this is the first time that authorities have offered an explanation.  

Ivanov was arrested on March 18 2008 on charges of leaking information to businessmen who were under investigation.

On March 26 2008, Iliev was invited to appear before Parliament's committee on internal order and public security. He refused, instead sending a letter to committee members, extracts of which were published by news website mediapool.bg. The website said that the extracts had been given to it by sources.

“I have been a subject of a oppression aimed at stopping me from taking part in the debate on the problems of the Interior Ministry,” the letter said. “The charges against me prevent me from answering all the questions I could be asked, because my answers could be used against me,” Iliev said. “My statements would have helped create more transparency within the work of Interior Ministry,” he said.