SOFIA – A major scandal involving alleged police patronage of a multi-million pound cigarette smuggling operation has rocked Bulgaria's political scene, prompting calls for the resignation of the interior minister in the EU's poorest member state.
Earlier last week, civil society group BOEC, known for its long-running campaign to reform Bulgaria's justice system, published photographs of WhatsApp messages between police officers that showed high-level corruption in a case reminiscent of a Hollywood-style crime drama.
Leaked cables show that in November 2024, six Bulgarian police officers discovered a suspicious truck believed to be carrying contraband cigarettes. They alerted their superiors, calling for immediate action.
Although police commanders initially praised the officers for tracking the vehicle, they later ordered them to halt the operation. “Colleagues, retreat,” their immediate supervisor Ivan Ivanov wrote in a WhatsApp group.
However, the officers ignored the order and continued the raid. Shortly before the arrests began, the suspects reportedly received a phone call and attempted to flee, as seen in a video of the operation.
The truck was found to be carrying illegal cigarettes worth around €6 million, with authorities suspecting the cargo was part of a long-running smuggling route supplying goods to the EU and the Middle East.
The operation marked the largest seizure of contraband cigarettes in a single police operation in Bulgaria. Details of the case emerged in early April when both a WhatsApp chat and footage of the raid were published.
According to sources cited by Euractiv, the evidence was made public to protect the officers involved in the incident from possible retaliation and dismissal.
Interior Minister Daniel Mitov (GERB/EPP) said police would investigate the material. GERB leader and former Prime Minister Boyko Borisov called for “sweeping out everyone involved in the case.”
The scandal deepened when the opposition pro-European coalition We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria demanded full accountability and warned it would seek his resignation unless a thorough investigation was launched. On Friday, the coalition asked parliament to force the Interior Ministry to disclose all data, including classified information about the operation, but the ruling majority rejected the proposal.
“This case casts a shadow on the reputation of the Bulgarian police,” the coalition said in a statement.
BOEC claims that some of the police commanders involved may be linked to Delyan Peevski, an influential MP from the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS – New Beginning), who has been sanctioned for corruption in both the US and UK. Peevski’s party plays a key role in supporting the current ruling coalition.
“There is no investigation into senior officers, instead efforts are being made to punish officers who have failed to do their job,” the BOEC said.
Peevski denied any wrongdoing, saying “the entire smuggling network will be exposed” and accused his political opponents of using “fabricated stories” to discredit his party.
Former Minister of Internal Affairs and Justice Ivan Demerdzhiev commented: “I am not surprised that the officers acted contrary to orders. What surprises me is that someone gave instructions that were so clearly incompatible with ethics and the law. Even more surprising is the prolonged silence and inaction on the part of the political and professional leadership of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.”
Demerdzhiev also linked the police commanders involved in the case with Peevsky.
The problem has international dimensions. Late last year, Belgian media reported that cigarette imports from Bulgaria and Turkey were significantly reducing excise revenues in Belgium. The country is estimated to be losing around €500 million annually, with 25.6% of cigarettes consumed in Belgium coming from abroad – mainly from Bulgaria.
(Krassen Nikolov | Euractiv.bg)
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