Erol Mumun took over the mayor's chair in Kardzhali after the local elections in the fall of 2023. He won the post in the first round as a candidate of the MRF, inheriting the government from the long-time mayor Hasan Azis.
At the end of 2024, Erol Mumun was also elected deputy chairman of "MPS - New Beginning". During the internal party split in the movement, he took a categorical position in support of the wing around Delyan Peevski. Because of this, he was expelled from the local party structure, which remained loyal to Ahmed Dogan, but the mayor publicly refused to recognize the legitimacy of this decision and continued to attack the actions of the other faction.
As mayor, Erol Mumun entered into a serious institutional and open conflict with the previous city leadership. He made a number of accusations against Hasan Azis for poor financial management and suspicions of serious corruption practices. According to him, the then administration left the local treasury with accumulated debts amounting to tens of millions of euros.
The current questioning is not the first case of tension between the mayor and the structures of the Ministry of Internal Affairs - Kardzhali this year. In an earlier incident in 2026, Erol Mumun and his political associates were named as participants in an attempt to break into the building of the Regional Administration in the city. Their actions at the time were provoked by the detention of a local municipal employee.
An official statement is expected from the prosecutor's office and law enforcement agencies regarding today's specialized operation.