site.btaSecond Charge against Former Intelligence Chief

Second Charge against Former Intelligence Chief

Sofia, January 16 (BTA) - A second charge for embezzlement was brought Monday against the former chief of the National Intelligence Service, Gen. Kircho Kirov, said the prosecution magistracy.

Gen. Kirov is accused of embezzling over 5.1 million leva during a period of five years from 2007 to 2011 in complicity with a trusted co-worker who headed a key department in his Agency.

In May last year the Military Appellate Court upheld a ten-year prison sentence for Gen. Kirov after he was sentenced for embezzling close to 5 million leva. He was acquitted of document forgery charges.

The court also banned him from heading State or public institutions for a period of 13 years.

The prosecution office says that the fresh embezzlement charges are based on inflation which transpired during the first embezzlement case when the general was explaining to the court that the money he had been accused of embezzling was spent for intel operations with the highest level of classification and entirely in the interest of national security.

The prosecutor asked documentary proof of the general's allegations and subsequently ordered a probe of archived financial documents. During this check, the inspectors found evidence of withdrawal and spending of large amounts of money - four-digit figures - and the prosecution magistracy opened a new probe.

Documents that are supposed to detail how the money was to be spent, have been destroyed to cover up the embezzlement, said the prosecution magistracy.