site.btaSpecialized Prosecution Office Opens 2,743 Case Files in 2019

The Specialized Prosecution Office (SPO) opened a total of 2,743 case files in 2019, which is the high such number on an annual basis for the period between 2012 and 2020, Kalina Chapkanova, a member of the Prosecutors' College with the Supreme Judicial Council, reported here on Wednesday.

In 2020, a total of 7,066 case files were solved and 77 plea bargains were reached, Chapkanova said. There were 84 cases for corruption in 2019 and 86 in 2020, she added.

Chapkanova noted that the data proves that the SPO has a high success rate.

There were 898 pre-trial proceedings on organized crime submitted to court. A total of 1,157 people were convicted of crimes while 83 were acquitted. Some 15 people were tried for crimes agains the state. Since 2016, the case loads handled by the SPO have been more than those of district prosecution offices.

SPO Head Valentina Madjarova argued that SPO's work has been effective through the years. Law and politics are closely linked to each other, she said, voicing a hope that in Bulgaria, which has rule of law, "politics will serve the law and not the other way round".

In 2021, a total of 66 people were tried for corruption and 16 of them were convicted, including a Deputy Minister and mayors of municipalities, Madjarova reported.

"The SPO has no need to be protected, the law needs protection," Madjarova said.

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DT/KK