The Burgas Court of Appeal is hearing appeals from Belitsa mayor Radoslav Revanski and Sungurlare mayor Dimitar Gavazov against their detention in custody. It will announce its ruling at 7.30pm.

Last Thursday, Gavazov's supporters stood in silence outside the same building while the court decided whether he stays in jail. Today, people from both municipalities came to the Palace of Justice and gathered under the courtroom windows as the hearing began.

The background: Silent protest in Burgas backs detained Sungurlare mayor

Prosecutors accuse the mayors of joining a criminal conspiracy to trade in influence over public procurement in Sungurlare municipality. Hristo Shirokov, the DPS party's regional coordinator in Burgas, is also charged, so three people face charges in the case.

The prosecution wants the mayors to stay in custody. It says there is enough evidence that they took part in the conspiracy, and a real risk they would commit another crime. Prosecutors say Gavazov put pressure on former and current municipal staff and threatened them, and that some witnesses fear both mayors.

Prosecutor Krasimira Katelieva told BNT: "There is no evidence of political pressure." She said only one of the defendants tried to bring that angle into the case, and the evidence gathered supports the suspicion against all three on the charge brought so far.

The defence denies the charges and wants the harshest measure lifted. Revanski's lawyer Ilian Vasilev says the prosecution itself does not believe it has evidence of a specific crime, yet the defence has to answer exactly that. "They have no charge linked to specific public procurement contracts, to specific actions on specific public procurement contracts," he told BNT.

In court, Revanski denied being a criminal and called what happened to him "a monstrous injustice". Gavazov also rejected the charges. He said he and Revanski never discussed public procurement, and he did not talk to Shirokov about choosing firms.

Supporters are waiting outside the building for the ruling. A Belitsa resident said the mayor is an honest and fair man who has completely changed the town, and that is why people came to back him. Another woman at the protest said she believes the mayor was wrongly charged and is being held without evidence.