site.btaState Distrains LV 600 Mln in Assets of Fugitive Banker Tsvetan Vassilev

State Distrains LV 600 Mln in Assets of Fugitive Banker Tsvetan Vassilev

Sofia, December 1 (BTA) - Sofia City Court has allowed the criminal assets forfeiture commission to distrain assets worth over 600 million leva owned by fugitive Bulgarian banker Tsvetan Vassilev, his wife and daughter, and legal entities controlled by Vassilev. The assets are meant to provide security for a future claim to the amount of 964,000 leva, the commission said Tuesday.

The distrained assets include shares in the capital of 11 companies,20 bank accounts, four vehicles, 288 works of art, 16 real estates in Sofia, including several large buildings, five in the skiing resort of Bansko, two in the resort town of Sozopol and one in Varna and Tsarevo.

For the first time since its establishment, the criminal assets forfeiture commission distrains a property in Switzerland worth 47,559,915 leva and the money in four accounts with Swiss banks. The distraint of the Swiss assets has the green light from a Swiss court.

Tsvetan Vassilev was the majority owner of the failed Corporate Commercial Bank which collapsed last year. Bulgaria wants him to be tried for syphoning his own bank but he has so far been avoiding justice and is in Serbia waiting a court decision on Bulgaria's extradition request.