site.btaCourt Orders House Arrest for Two MP Candidates of Alliance for Rights and Freedoms in EU Funds Fraud Case

The Haskovo District Court Thursday ordered house arrest for the mayor of the southern municipality of Mineralni bani, Myumyun Iskander, his son Ali Ali and municipal staffer Bayryam Ilyaz. The three were remanded in custody for misuse of EU funding and are being sent to house arrest after a court hearing that lasted over 5 hours. Outside the courthouse, hundreds of supporters of the three accused held a protest rally, closed a central Haskovo street and chanted slogans against the court.

The three have been charged with participating in an organized crime group for misuse of EU funding. The charges were brought after an operation by the counter-corruption commission and Sofia City Prosecution Service in Mineralni bani, and an investigation into unlawful receipt of EU subsidies.

Myumyun Iskander and his son Ali Ali are MP candidates (the former in Haskovo and the latter in Pazardzhik) of the Alliance for Rights and Freedoms, the coalition including members of a MRF faction supporting the party's Honorary Chairman Ahmed Dogan and fighting with the MRF faction headed by Delyan Peevski over the MRF electorate.

On account of their being candidates for Parliament, their defence applied for moving the case to the Sofia City Court and for recusal of the judge. The judge dismissed the application and proceeded on the case.

Dzhevdet Chakarov and other members of Dogan's MRF faction came to join the protest rally outside the court.

Chakarov insisted that the parliamentary elections, which are now scheduled for October 27, be postponed and said he would make sure this is discussed at a meeting of the Consultative Council on National Security under the President, which will be held on Friday.

The judge said that while it can reasonably be presumed that the three committed the offence they are accused of, they are public figures, are unlikely to hide or commit another offence, which is why they can be in house arrest rather than in a detention centre.

Prosecutor Angel Kanev said he would appeal the court decision.

He also said that the European Public Prosecutor's Office will be notified of the case. 

In a comment for the press, Myumyun Iskander said that the two weeks in remand made him think that he should have paid more attention to his family, children, grand children and himself rather than work so hard. Asked if he sees any political motives for the trial, he declined comment.