Bulgarian national political row over arrest of Varna mayor

A national political row has erupted in Bulgaria over the July 8 arrest of Varna mayor Blagomir Kotsev, which his lawyer has alleged is politically-motivated and has described as repression.

Kotsev, who in November 2023 was elected mayor on a We Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (WCC-DB) ticket, defeating incumbent Ivan Portnih of Boiko Borissov’s GERB, is in 24-hour custody and as of the morning of July 9, has not been charged.

WCC has called a protest in front of Varna municipality on July 9 “to defend our mayor from political repression”. WCC frequently has alleged that its public figures are singled out for prosecution while allegations surrounding people from the ruling majority are not followed up.

WCC leader Assen Vassilev told reporters in the National Assembly that the whole parliamentary group would go to Varna for the protest.

The owner of the Zaliva 47-SP catering company, Plamenka Dimitrova, alleged to bTV that she had been subject to attempted extortion in 2024 in connection with a public procurement contract for feeding underprivileged children and had lodged a complaint with the anti-corruption commission.

The contract, worth 1.5 million leva, had been won by another company.

Dimitrova told bTV that she had been a partner of the municipality for 16 years: “This is the first time they have asked me for a bribe and I am subjected to pressure and unlawful actions”.

She alleged that she had been subject to intimidation and there had been a treat to her life, her family and her business.

Dimitova said that she had spoken directly with Kotsev, who she alleged personally held the talks on percentages.

According to Dimitrova, Kotsev told her that a high-ranking person in WCC was aware of the issue and had ordered the collection of the percentages in question. Dimitrova did not specify who this person was, but assumed that it was Vassilev.

Kotsev’s lawyer Milen Ralchev told reporters on July 9 that an arrest warrant had been served on Kotsev at 11.30pm on July 8, in connection with a case by the anti-corruption commission and the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office.

“The warrant did not explain the grounds for the arrest,” Ralchev said.

“In spite of our insistent requests, it was not explained to us what necessitated the mayor to be arrested in July 2025 in a case initiated in 2024,” he said.

Ralchev said that before Kotsev’s arrest, the mayor’s home and office had been searched.

“The search warrant was issued on July 2 2025. The arrest warrant was dated five days later. We believe that this warrant is devoid of any legal basis. This is repression,” Ralchev said.

He said that an appeal would be lodged against the arrest warrant, which Ralchev said was in his opinion unlawful.

“I see a political context for this arrest and the pursuit of political goals. I briefly familiarised myself with the allegations of a lady as the complainant. I can describe them as frivolous and ridiculous.”

Bulgarian media reported on July 9 that WCC-DB activists had found a photo of Borissov from 2015 with staff of Zaliva 47-SP.

Vassilev said that that over the last three years of Portnih’s tenure as mayor of Varna, Zaliva 47-SP has won orders worth six million leva.

“The company applied for the relevant order and lost it in September 2024. It appealed to the CPC (competition protection commission), which rejected the appeal a little over a month later.

“Then the company appealed to the Supreme Administrative Court, which on December 17 left the decision in force and ordered the company to pay 4500 leva because it lost the case. This is the moment when the woman in question realised that she had been asked for a bribe and filed a report with the prosecutor’s office and the Bulgarian anti-corruption commission,” he said.

Vassilev said that Movement for Rights and Freedoms leader Delayn Peevski was trying to help Borissov win Varna and Sofia by official means after Borissov failed to win them in elections. 

Borissov, speaking to reporters in the National Assembly on July 9, said: “I listened to what a woman said on TV, that’s all I know.”

Asked to comment on the accusations by WCC-DB that he was the first to report the arrest, Borissov said: “When the WCC-DB talk to you and say ‘good day”‘ you can turn on your light, it means it’s already dark.”

Asked about a photo showing him receiving a note at a news conference on July 8 saying that Kotsev had been arrested, Borissov said: “”They give me a note, what can I say, what do I know, they just told me and gave me a note that they told me”.

(Photo of Kotsev: jellybeanlover, via Wikimedia Commons)

Please support The Sofia Globe by signing up to become a subscriber to our page on Patreon:

Become a Patron!