On Thursday, 22 October, council staff and residents of Sungurlare gathered outside the Law Courts in Burgas to back mayor Dimitar Gavazov. The Burgas District Prosecutor's Office has charged him with criminal conspiracy to trade in influence, and it will ask the court to keep him in custody.
Gavazov was arrested on Tuesday, 20 October, in an operation by the organised crime unit GDBOP and the State Agency for National Security (DANS). On Wednesday, deputy mayor Tatyana Ivanova said four of the council's public procurement contracts were probably under investigation. The same day, dozens of people gathered outside the regional police directorate in Burgas to support the mayor.
More on this story: Sungurlare mayor detained, possibly four public contracts under investigation
Two others are charged in the case. The second is Radoslav Revanski, mayor of Belitsa, who was detained on Wednesday, 21 October. The third is Hristo Shirokov, regional leader of the DPS party in Burgas.
Both mayors were charged this morning and are held for 72 hours. Prosecutors will also ask for custody for Revanski. It is not known whether the court will rule on their pre-trial restrictions today.
Prosecutors say the conspiracy formed in Sungurlare municipality in early 2024, but they have not established the exact date. They say it lasted more than two years, until 20 October. The accused mayors acted in their capacity as mayors of their municipalities.
Police searched administrative buildings and private addresses in Sungurlare and Belitsa. They seized many documents on public procurement in both municipalities and questioned witnesses. It is not known how the alleged trading in influence worked, or which contracts are linked to the investigation.
The DPS parliamentary group said it would ask the acting prosecutor general to look into alleged political pressure on Revanski. The party says Nikolay Shushkov, head of the Customs Agency, wanted the Belitsa mayor to join "Progressive Bulgaria" in return for a promise of political protection and cover.
The DPS wants to know whether this pressure is linked to the GDBOP operation. Shushkov is on a business trip and will comment on the claims when he returns.
Shirokov is already under house arrest in a separate pre-trial case, for taking part in an organised crime group. That investigation concerns tampering with water meters and extortion of hoteliers on the southern Black Sea coast.