The Sofia District Court fully acquitted Kostadin Kostadinov, leader of the "Vazrazhdane" party, on the charge of inciting panic among the population through his statements related to the stocks in the state reserve warehouses, as and with the anti-epidemic measures during the pandemic, in an interview on March 13, 2020, BTA reported.
The decision of the court is not final and is subject to appeal and protest within 15 days.
According to the court panel, Kostadinov's accusation is not correctly constructed, because it is more political talk, devoid of specifics. He also noted that he was charged under Art. 326 par. 1 of the Criminal Code, which mainly concerns classic cases of bomb alerts.
The court indicated that there was no direct intention behind Kostadinov's words, as the information he shared in his interview was previously submitted by his PR. However, the court noted that there is misinformation in Kostadinov's words regarding the lack of tons of yellow cheese and cheese from the reserve's warehouses, as he refers to data in the media in a previous period.
The court acquitted Kostadinov for having given, through a specific statement, misleading warning signs on national air, during a pandemic and a state of emergency.
In their pleadings, lawyers Stoyko Slavov and Polina Velcheva asked the court to acquit Kostadinov. According to them, the accusation against him is a political order. They note that Kostadinov's statements in the interview did not lead to mass panic in the population and did not have a harmful result.
During today's meeting, Kostadin Kostadinov was not present, as he was unable to attend. A representative of the Sofia District Prosecutor's Office was also not present.