Burgas district prosecutors have charged Sungurlare mayor Dimitar Gavazov and Belitsa mayor Radoslav Revanski with influence peddling. Prosecutors say the two acted in a conspiracy with Hristo Shirokov. The mayors have been detained for up to 72 hours.
Prosecutors will ask a court to remand both men in custody.
All three are charged under Article 321, paragraph 6 of the Criminal Code. Prosecutors say Gavazov and Revanski acted as mayors of their municipalities.
Prosecutors say the evidence gathered so far shows the conspiracy was formed in Sungurlare municipality on an unspecified day from the start of 2024. They say the criminal activity continued until 20 October 2026.
Officers of the GDBOP, Bulgaria's organised crime agency, detained the mayors after a special operation. They searched administrative buildings and home addresses in Sungurlare and Belitsa, seized documents on public procurement in the two municipalities and questioned many witnesses.
Shirokov is the subject of a separate pre-trial case, in which he is under house arrest.