On November 17, 2023, publicist Ivaylo Tsvetkov – Noisi was stopped for a routine check. The breathalyzer reported 2.5 per mille of alcohol in his blood, and not long after, a case was opened. In the end, he got away with a suspended sentence, and his car was not confiscated by the authorities. This sparked resentment and protests from parents who lost their children on the road because of drunk and drugged drivers. On March 18, 2024, Tsvetkov entered into an agreement with the prosecutor's office, pleading guilty and was sentenced to 10 months suspended with 3 years probation and was left without a license for a year and 2 months. And the prosecutor's office suggested that his car be confiscated as well. On June 6, 2024, Miroslav Petrov, who is a judge at the Sofia District Court, ordered the car to be returned to Tsvetkov, referring directly to the Constitution. Diana Rusinova from the European Center for Transport Policies spoke to FACTI on the subject.
- Ms. Rusinova, lawyers, prosecutors and judges are fiercely arguing whether Judge Miroslav Petrov's decision to refuse to confiscate the car of the intellectual Ivaylo Tsvetkov - Noizy, who was caught drunk behind the wheel, was correct. Why is a car confiscated sometimes and not other times…
- Look, the dispute here is not about why this judge ordered the confiscation or non-confiscation of the car of a person who has proven to have violated the law. Here, the focus has very conveniently shifted to the fact that there was pressure on this judge. I have already stated several times in public that the dignified position and behavior of a magistrate when he is convinced of the correctness of his work, of what he has ruled, should be for him to stand up with his name, with his face and say. “I am right and whoever wants to, let him check me. I have not violated any moral or other law in the Republic of Bulgaria. So I have no problem with being checked.“ But conveniently the topic shifted to the fact that this judge was harassed by the prosecutor's office.
- Yes, now judge Miroslav Petrov is complaining precisely about the fact that the prosecutor's office is checking him?
- I have a question. Then, when an association sends a signal to the prosecutor's office, and in this case we have several associations, because this is a battle that we have been fighting for a long time. Association “European Center “Angels on the Road“ We have been fighting drunks and drug addicts on the road for over five years. We have not thought of filing a complaint after this judge's decision. That is, we have not woken up one morning and said to ourselves “…. hey, what has this judge done, let's file a complaint against him.“ This is a suggestion, a lie and it is not true. On the contrary, we are quite consciously fighting against such outrages. That is why I say that the focus is shifting, because many politicians are also trying to get into the topic and in general it is trying to be politicized. I am categorically against it, because this is a battle of citizens, of non-governmental organizations. Politicians have no place here.
There is something else. There are attempts to link the topic to various foundations from other countries. This is also ugly and outrageous, because there is no such thing. This is a base lie. And whoever spreads it should be a little ashamed. The association “Angels on the Road“ includes Philip's parents. The 14-year-old boy, because he didn't make it to 15 after he was run over meters from the Ministry of Interior building by a drunk and drugged man. This is a battle we are waging against drunk and drugged drivers.
- Now, according to Judge Petrov, confiscating the car is unconstitutional…
- Okay, I'll take you back years, because I believe you know that if you steal firewood, the penalty in the Criminal Code is to have your car confiscated. The same penalty as was recently adopted for drivers on the road who have used alcohol and drugs. I ask then, why wasn't the penalty for stealing wood from the forest declared unconstitutional? Because it affected illiterate people from minorities. And suddenly now, when the sanction affected public figures, politicians, magistrates, it became unconstitutional. It is not true that this judge has ruled like this in similar cases before. Judge Petrov simply set a precedent by not confiscating a drunk driver's car. After his ruling, many other judges also began not to confiscate cars from drunk and drugged drivers. These people turned the law, the Criminal Code, into a hodgepodge, into a “door in the sand“. And let alone that they made the law “door in the sand“, they also opened the door wide.
- On November 17, 2023, Noisi was stopped for a routine check, and today - already 2025, we are still talking about the case. Is this effective justice…
- This case, the behavior of the judge and all professional organizations related to judges in Bulgaria, show one thing - not only that we have not made a judicial reform, but that the situation is critical. We are talking about judicial dictate. Anyone who complains and disagrees is accused of being a Sorosoid, of being tied to political parties, etc. Do you realize how wrong this is and how the democratic, innate values and the constitutional rights of citizens are being trampled on. We have a banal case of a judge who has obviously decided to rule like this due to some of his views. I want this judge to come out and look Philip's mother in the eye and tell her: “I'm sorry, but I don't think that confiscating the car will stop the drunks and drug addicts!“ I want him to come out and tell her in her eyes, to look her in the eye, this woman who lost her son to a drunk driver.
- There's even information that the car has been sold... What will be taken away now...
- I can't answer that question because I don't have that information.
- The incident was in 2023, and now it's 2025. The car hasn't been confiscated and there's nothing stopping it from being sold...
- Look, the idea of this change in the Criminal Code wasn't to take people's cars. Nobody needs people's cars. The idea was to be a preventive measure, so that people don't get in a car under the influence of alcohol and drugs. We want to make people understand that they shouldn't drive drunk or on drugs.