site.btaSports Totalizator Commission Not Convened as Required in Last 3 Years, Says Minister Peshev

Youth and Sports Minister Ivan Peshev Monday told journalists that in the last three years, the commission overseeing the National Sports Totalizator [popularly known as the Toto] has not been convened in accordance with the rules. Instead, it was scheduled by order of former Totalizator executive director Georgi Tarlekov, who was dismissed on March 24 over a faulty draw a day earlier.

The Executive Director is in charge of designating the commission overseeing a draw of the Bulgarian Sports Totalizator, a state-owned company which operates lottery games and sport betting. In earlier years, commissions were staffed by one representative of the Totalizator, one of the National Revenue Agency (NRA) and an external expert. More recently, they have only been comprised of Totalizator representatives.

Peshev said that it is being determined whether the commission was on site for the faulty draw of March 23 and whether it did its job correctly. "I can speak when the check has been completed," he added, refusing to comment on whether the faulty draw resulted from a human error, technical error or sabotage.

On March 23, a draw in the Totalizator’s "Second Lotto Chance - 5 out of 35" game was compromised as the last number drawn from the winning combination turned out to be 41, when there are not supposed to be numbers bigger than 35 in this format. On the next day, Sports Minister Peshev ordered an investigation into the Totalizator’s work and said he would dismiss “the entire management and those responsible for this situation.”

Peshev was in Troyan on Monday to inspect the construction of a new sports hall.