Bulgaria’s Chief Prosecutor Boris Velchev (left) and Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov (right) have a lot of work to get done, according to the 2011 EC monitoring report. Photo by BGNES
Bulgaria has failed to achieve “convincing results” in its fight against Bukgarian Mafia driven organized crime and corruption, according to the annual monitoring report of the European Commission on its post- The EU accession progress.
The EC is about as critical of Bulgaria’s continuing failure to crack down on organized crime and corruption as it is of the country’s flawed reform of the judiciary.
The 2011 monitoring report does recognize that Bulgaria has achieved progress with respect to police report through the integration of operative and investigative police work. This is recommended to be deepened, including a new focus on reforming pre-trial investigations.
“In spite of persevering police actions to tackle organized crime, the overall results need to be significantly improved. Although the joint team on organized crime achieved several indictments related to important organised crime-groups and some convictions have been rendered, other important cases have been concluded with acquittals since the Commission’s last annual report. In appeal, severe detention sentences have been pronounced but not yet enforced in one emblematic organised crime case. Weaknesses exist in the collection of evidence, the protection of witnesses as well as in investigative strategies, comprehensive financial investigations and the securing of assets,” the EC report states, urging Bulgaria’s Chief Prosecutor to “systematically analyse the reasons for acquittals in high level cases
related Click here: E.U. Warns Bulgaria and Romania on Reforms – NYTimes.com
