site.btaAppellate Court Upholds Decision to Keep Svilengrad Customs Chief in Custody

Appellate Court Upholds Decision to Keep Svilengrad Customs Chief in Custody


Plovdiv, South Central Bulgaria, February 5 (BTA) - The
Appellate Court in Plovdiv Thursday upheld a lower-court
decision to keep interim Svilengrad customs service chief Todor
Karaivanov in indefinite custody. Karaivanov has been charged
with taking two bribes aggregating 2,773 leva.

The man appeared in the courtroom guarded by seven police
officers. The trial against him will be secret, because the
investigation has used special surveillance means.

Karaivanov was arrested a week ago with bribe money on him. A
search in his office yielded 12,000 euro in cash, as confirmed
by his lawyer Gergana Georgieva on Thursday. Six thousand leva
was found in his home. According to the lawyer, it is uncertain
whether the banknotes were marked.

Lawyer Georgieva declined to answer a journalist's question
about how a civil servant can have so much cash, considering
that his wife is also a wage earner. Georgieva noted that her
client has been working in the customs system for 19 years, has
been decorated many times and "has proven himself as a
remarkable professional and perfectionist." She said that
Karaivanov, more than anyone else, wants the truth to be
uncovered.

Prosecutor Marina Belcheva declined to comment, because, she
said, the investigation has been conducted by the Sofia City
Prosecution Office. By order of Prosecutor General Sotir
Tsatsarov, the investigation was assigned to the Special
Anti-Corruption Unit established between the State Agency for
National Security and the Sofia City Prosecution Office. "The
act he committed is unforgivable for a person in his position,"
Belcheva said. The prosecutor also said that the description of
Karaivanov's alleged crime may be altered after more evidence is
gathered.

Judge Nedyalka Vassileva said that the first-instance court
decision for Karaivanov to remain in custody was well-founded
and lawful.

Emerging from the courtroom, Karaivanov said he is a victim of
"those who control contraband at Svilengrad customs," and the
matter concerns "economic operators linked to customs officers."