Stoyan Mavrodiev has been detained. What should be raised as questions is to ensure that he is provided to the Bulgarian justice system and I am personally very curious to hear him, I am convinced that he has a lot to say, that he can guide us in the investigation of many cases. I expect him to do so. This was what the Minister of Interior Ivan Demerdzhiev said to journalists.
He also commented on the case of the mayor of Kardzhali: "No one has brought the mayor of Kardzhali, he was summoned for questioning after urgent actions were taken. These actions were fully approved by the court and were carried out legally. He was summoned to be questioned in connection with the collected documents. Please, let's not speculate."
Asked how he would respond to Erol Mumun's claims that he uses the Ministry of Interior as a “stick”, Demerdzhiev said: “You are journalists, do your own checks in Kardzhali – against how many people actions have been taken within the framework of pre-trial proceedings or preliminary checks. See if these people are of the same political color and whether all the actions are directed against Erol Mumun. My answer is: no – actions are being taken throughout the territory against all those who have evidence of having committed violations of the law.“
We recall that in the parliamentary elections in April 2026, Ivan Demerdzhiev was elected as a member of parliament from Kardzhali.
When asked by journalists whether the Minister of the Interior knew whether Oleg Nevzorov was in Turkey, Demerdzhiev indicated that the issues were much more serious than Oleg Nevzorov.
"We have identified many people related to this case, some of these people are in a structure to which Nevzorov belongs. This structure is not limited to Oleg Nevzorov. We have also requested assistance from partner services, because the structure is much larger. We are also investigating why municipal and state authorities did not at least counteract these phenomena, and somewhere there is evidence that they even cooperated. We are also investigating the connections of Nevzorov and his structure with people holding key positions in the executive branch or in political circles or in municipal government".
This is a group that has been reported to be involved in crimes across the country. I would not commit that everyone in this structure has been involved in crimes. We have collected thousands of documents, which have been handed over to the prosecutor's office. We are doing everything to establish the full extent of the people involved in the actions of this group, he added.