Five men have been detained, accused of organizing a criminal group for "cloning" and smuggling stolen cars, the press service of the Appellate Prosecutor's Office in Varna announced today. The investigation is led by the Regional Prosecutor's Office in the city.
According to the indictment, the criminal organization was engaged in "cloning" the data from the electronics of the stolen cars. In this way, the cars were exported to countries in the Middle East and Turkey, and some of them remained in Bulgaria.
The pre-trial proceedings in the case began at the beginning of 2026. The special operation to detain the members of the criminal group was conducted on January 22, and it involved officers from the General Directorate "National Police" (GDNP) and the regional directorates of the Ministry of Interior in Varna and Stara Zagora.
During the searches, fake license plates, powers of attorney, and forged documents for establishing the origin of the cars were found. Technical means for re-stamping the identifying numbers of the cars were also found, as well as 12 grams of cocaine, empty packets, and an electronic scale. During the investigation, it was established that the group had been operating from March 2024 to the present time throughout the country.
The five detained men are between 25 and 61 years old. Four of them - for a period of up to 72 hours.
It is expected that requests will be submitted to the Regional Court in Varna to impose on them the most severe measure of restraint – "detention".
The work on documenting and proving the crimes committed by the group continues.
BTA recalls that in mid-December in Varna, members of another criminal association were detained, which, however, operated outside the territory of the country. According to the indictment, its members were engaged in so-called QR phishing.