The case against the businessman continues with the questioning of witnesses with a political bias Vasil Bozhkov. The Sofia City Court sat for three consecutive days to question more than 20 people, including two victims - Boyan and Tsvetomir Naydenovi, BTA reported.
Bozhkov was brought in as a defendant in an investigation into an organized criminal group for extortion, official and corruption crimes. He is being prosecuted as an instigator in complicity with officials from the State Gambling Commission (SGA), who allowed fees under the Gambling Act not to be collected in full. According to the indictment, as a result of the collected much lower fees, damages were caused to the state budget in the amount of BGN 559,739,164.70.
At the beginning of the session, the court dismissed the case in the part of the charges against Bozhkov's former partner Boris Bekyarov, who died in September 2024.
Boyan Naydenov stated today before the court that he has known Bozhkov since 1993. "Then my father suggested to Bozhkov that we do a joint business, with 60 being for him and 40 for us. He asked that part of our percentage be distributed to other people. In 2002, there was a proposal for a deal, and on the day of its conclusion, we found out that from being a direct owner, we are becoming an indirect one," he pointed out.
Naydenov also said that they have decided to apply for a license for online games. Filed in Malta. In 2006, we started operating throughout the EU. Six years later, a law on online gambling was adopted in Bulgaria, and we applied in Bulgaria as well, he noted. Boyan Naydenov also told about another company in which they also had a 40% share, but at Bozhkov's request they gave 30% of them to other people. He did not remember whether they received money for the transfer of the share.
In 2016, we decided to apply for a license in Bulgaria with the company "Efbet". Shortly after, Bozhkov called us again to see each other and we were surprised how he understood so quickly, said Naydenov. According to him, Bozhkov said that they could not get a license without his participation. We have been waiting for a decision of the Gambling Commission for more than a year, and we understood from people who communicate with the DKH that this will not happen. We transferred 60 percent of the company to Bozhkov and received permission from the DKH. Mass inspections of our halls also began, in which Bozhkov had no part, Naydenov also pointed out.
He also told about a meeting in Bozhkov's office, where he was with his brother Tsvetomir and their father Stefan Naydenov. Bozhkov threatened them that he would terminate them and gave them a month to think about whether they would transfer 51% to him from another company. This required them to hire security guards and move around in armored cars.
Boyan Naydenov also told about another case in which Bozhkov came to the family building of the Naydenovs and told them to move out. In the meantime, a report was sent to the prosecutor's office about our defamation, he added.
During the interrogation, Naydenov also said that a person with the nickname Kuro had to "bewitch" them.
"There was an action by DANS and the services that came to check and demand documents. We expected this because they warned us that they would lock us up for eight months. Then came the media sloppiness. Dozens of articles were being created about us, our family, with various accusations. They also invented the nickname "Tsekites" for us. "There were my brother's obituaries pasted around our office," he said.
When asked by Bozhkov whether he received much larger dividends, Naydenov replied that this can be seen in the companies' accounting. Vasil Bozhkov also asked him if he had been with him on family holidays in several resorts in Europe. Boyan Naydenov confirmed.
He also stated that his brother did not participate in some of the meetings, but he was certainly present at the conversation in which the threat of "termination" was made.
The court session was stopped for a while for a break, during which Vasil Bozhkov told journalists that he had no words for what was happening. He defined Naydenov's testimony as a fabricated thesis. "He proclaimed himself and when we started asking questions, he got into contradictions," he commented. According to Bozhkov, the death threats are fabrications. Both of them came constantly, I raised them like children, he said about the Naydenov brothers.
As long as this is the situation in the country, there will be many such cases. We need to talk in general about what is happening in the country. This case is unimportant, pointed out Vasil Bozhkov. According to him, the government of the country has been bought, the elections - falsified, and the services - dependent, the judicial system - as well.