The Sofia City Court has ordered "detention in custody" for Varna Mayor Blagomir Kotsev, the two municipal councilors Yordan Kateliev and Nikolay Stefanov, and businessman Ivaylo Marinov.
The court's ruling is subject to appeal and protest before a higher instance.
A few days ago, the four were charged and detained for a period of 72 hours under investigation for a corruption crime in Varna. The Sofia City Prosecutor's Office requested that the court impose permanent arrest on them.
Judge Stoyan Mihov indicated that according to the evidence, there is a reasonable suspicion of the existence of an organized criminal group and the probable involvement of the defendants in a crime. He noted that there is no danger that the four will go into hiding, but there is a danger that they will commit a crime.
Milen Ralchev, Kotsev's lawyer, told journalists that he would appeal the court's ruling. According to him, the case should have been handled by the Varna District Court and investigated by the prosecutor's office there, indicating that these views of the defense could be shared by the higher instance.