site.btaProsecutors Reject Former Interior Ministry Chief Secretary's Petition

Prosecutors Reject Former Interior Ministry Chief Secretary's Petition

Sofia, March 9 (BTA)- The Sofia City Prosecution Office decided not to open pre-trial proceedings on a petition of former Interior Ministry chief secretary Georgi Kostov on the grounds of absence of perpetration of a general crime, sources from the Prosecution Office said on Thursday.

On February 22 Bulgarian President Rumen Radev decreed the release of Georgi Kostov as Chief Secretary of the Interior Ministry, acting on a proposal from the caretaker Cabinet. The reasons for the dismissal were "established violations affecting one of the core principles of the Interior Ministry: political neutrality". Following a complaint by Kostov that he had been pressured to resign by caretaker Interior Minister Plamen Uzunov, the prosecuting magistracy launched a probe.

During the probe, written testimonies were taken from Kostov, Uzunov and senior Interior Ministry officials.

In its reasoning for the decision, the Prosecution Office says that Kostov was not pressured to resign but was relieved of his post in a joint decision between the representatives of the executive power and the President, in line with the relevant procedure of the law.