Prosecutor Awarded €175,000 in Damages

Asen Vassilev, a prosecutor from Velingrad, has been awarded €175,000 (BGN 350,000) in compensation from the prosecution for an unlawful case brought against him.

vassilev initially sought nearly €500,000 (BGN 1 million) from the state prosecution. Judge Bohdana zhelyavska of the Sofia City Court (SGS) ordered the prosecution to pay him €175,000 for the harm caused by the illegal charges, and an additional €6,600 (BGN 13,000) to cover his expenses, according to a report from Lex.

This decision is a first instance ruling and can be appealed. However, the amount awarded is a record for a case of this type, especially since the case against Vassilev never went to trial, he wasn’t detained, and the only restrictions he faced where a temporary suspension from work.

In 2012, the prosecutor was accused of involvement with coffee vending machines. The prosecution alleged that Vassilev assisted his wife,Radostina Vasileva,in illegally taking control of 17 coffee machines owned by a business partner,Evgeni Malchev. The dispute arose from disagreements over their joint business, leading to a report against the prosecutor.

The case reached the city court in 2013, and Vassilev was removed from his position by the High Judicial Council, a decision upheld by the Supreme administrative Court.

However, the city court later dismissed the case and sent it back to the prosecution.For the next six years, the case wasn’t pursued, and in early 2019, the prosecutor’s office…