site.btaFinance Ministry Has No Information about Foreign Security Services Requesting Change in Leadership of Customs Agency

The Finance Ministry has received no official information from security services of partner countries of Bulgaria requesting a change in the leadership of the National Customs Agency, caretaker Finance Minister Lyudmila Petkova said Tuesday. She was questioned at a hearing of the parliamentary Ad Hoc Committee tasked with investigating corrupt practices in the Agency and the possible role of former finance minister Assen Vassilev in those practices. No official visits to the Ministry's building were recorded, either, Petkova stressed.

Recently, there were news circulating in Bulgarian media regarding an alert from Austria’s security services for bribes at border crossings in Bulgaria, which is why a change in the leadership of the Customs Agency had been requested, according to those publications.

Later on Tuesday, the committee will also give hearing to State Agency for National Security (SANS) Chair Plamen Tonchev. Former finance minister Assen Vassilev, Continue the Change-Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) deputy floor leader Atanas Atanasov, and CC-DB MP Miroslav Ivanov are also in attendance.

Petkova said that there were ambassadorial visits at the Finance Ministry but the topics of those meeting had not been documented. The meetings were not attended by experts or directors from the ministry, but only by representatives of the political cabinet, she noted.

Petkova has requested the same information from the Customs Agency, which has also confirmed to her that no information about requested changes in its administration has been received from partner services. No such requests were made at the meetings held, as well. Petkova added that the Agency receives daily operational information from partner services related to investigation of offences and crimes under the competence of the Customs Agency.