The Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office has filed an indictment with the Varna District Court against Blagomir Kotsev for attempting to knowingly conclude an unfavorable deal while he was regional governor of Varna. The charges cover the period from April 1 to August 2, 2022.
„The defendant attempted to knowingly conclude an unfavorable deal,“ the prosecutor’s office said in its description of the charges. They concern a contract for the direct assignment of legal services, concluded on April 1, 2022, between the Regional Administration in Varna and a law firm. Under an addendum dated August 2, 2022, the final value of the contract was set at BGN 23,256 including VAT.
The dispute concerns the need for external lawyers
According to the indictment, at that time a total of seven employees with legal education worked in two directorates of the regional administration. They were authorized to represent the administration in court cases, and their duties included providing legal assistance to the regional governor, checking the legality of acts, and drafting internal acts.
The external contract covered legal consultations, research into specific cases, preparation of documents, including for court proceedings, as well as checking the legality of contracts and other documents. According to the prosecutor’s office, these activities overlapped with the in-house legal services, and the existing staff was sufficient to perform them.
BGN 11,808 was paid
The prosecutor’s office claims that the deal could have caused significant damage to the regional administration. BGN 11,808 was paid under the contract, while the amount of BGN 11,448 under the second invoice remained unpaid after Kotsev was dismissed from the position of regional governor.
The investigation was conducted by the Investigation Department at the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office under the supervision of the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office. Following the filing of the indictment, the Varna District Court must schedule a preliminary hearing. At this stage, the charges do not constitute proven guilt, and Kotsev retains the presumption of innocence until a court ruling enters into force.
Sources: news.bg