Bulgaria's DM Charged With Alleged Malfeasance Linked to State Procurement

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Sofia Military District Prosecutor’s Office filed charges against Bulgarian Defense Minister Nikolay Nenchev over alleged malfeasance in office while holding a public tender for the procurement of military clothing in 2014, Nenchev said Friday.

"I have been accused of malfeasance in office," Nenchev said as broadcast by Nova TV after leaving the Prosecutor's Office.

In April, the charges in this case were brought against Venislav Tsanov, the director of the Defense Acquisition Directorate of Bulgaria's Defense Ministry. According to reports, the official was accused of refusal to sign the contract on production of military uniform with the enterprise, which proposed the best price. The contract was signed with another company, which resulted in the ministry suffering financial losses amounting to about $200,000.

Earlier in the day, the Bulgarian media reported that Nenchev was also involved in placing this public procurement order.

According to the BGNES news agency, the Prosecutor's Office has accused Nenchev of deliberately inciting Tsanov to break the law and sign the contract on procurement of military uniform with the contractor, which caused harmful consequences for the ministry. The minister was released on bail and the investigation over this case is underway, according to the media outlet.

Earlier this week, the Prosecutor's Office filed charges against Nenchev over alleged abuse while negotiating with Poland maintenance of the MiG-29 fighter aircraft. According to the investigation, the state treasury lost about $3.7 million as a result of this deal.

The agreement for the maintenance and repair of the six Soviet-made MiG-29 was signed between Warsaw and Sofia in late October, 2015. Poland agreed to service the six aircraft engines for 6.1 million euros ($6.45 million).