Documents from the #CorruptionLeaks series confirm that the Notary kept an archive of compromising materials
Documents from the #CorruptionLeaks series confirm that Martin Bozhanov, known as “the Notary,” had commissioned and possessed compromising materials that were used to blackmail senior officials at the National Revenue Agency (NRA), the Registry Agency, and members of the judiciary. The aim was to force them to resolve specific cases in accordance with his instructions.
The documents also show that Bozhanov had been warned in advance that charges were being prepared against him.
The information is part of a large-scale data leak obtained by BIRD, to which Sega, Mediapool, and other media outlets have also been given access. The materials are being published as part of the #CorruptionLeaks series.
Martin Bozhanov’s lobbying activities within Bulgaria’s justice system first became publicly known through ACF’s 2021 investigation “Quick Control List”.
Sega cites an application by the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office, dated 29 August 2023, seeking authorization to use special surveillance measures against Bozhanov. It describes a scheme aimed at influencing members of the judiciary “who are hearing cases concerning real estate acquired through fraud by Bozhanov, with the ultimate goal of having judicial panels recuse themselves until the cases are assigned to judges who will issue rulings in Bozhanov’s favour.”
“There are witness statements from members of the judiciary whom Martin Bozhanov attempted to influence,” the application also states.
The document further says that Bozhanov “possesses compromising materials through which he blackmails senior officials at the National Revenue Agency, the Registry Agency, and members of the judiciary in order to obtain undue benefits and to make them resolve specific cases not according to their own independent judgment, but in accordance with instructions from Bozhanov.”
A report by the Commission for Counter-Corruption dated 13 February 2024, prepared two weeks after Bozhanov’s murder, states that he used a garage at 8 “22 Septemvri” Street, opposite the entrance to the SS Club. According to the document, information had been obtained indicating that the garage was used to secretly record visitors for the purpose of carrying out illicit activities.
The same report concludes that documents, items and other objects relevant to the investigation may have been kept at addresses linked to Bozhanov, and that there was a risk they could be concealed. A search and seizure was therefore proposed.
An earlier operational report by the Commission for Counter-Corruption and Unlawfully Acquired Assets Forfeiture (KPKONPI), dated 29 August 2023, alleges that Bozhanov collected and kept compromising materials that were used to blackmail senior officials at the NRA, the Registry Agency, and members of the judiciary. According to the information, the SS Club in Sofia was established for this purpose — a venue with controlled access where recordings were made of people holding senior public positions.
The prosecution application cited above also shows that Bozhanov received advance information that he was about to be formally charged.
According to the Prosecutor’s Office, he was then admitted on a fictitious basis to the State Psychiatric Hospital in Karlukovo for treatment of a psychiatric disorder.
“In this way, Martin Bozhanov aims, in the course of the criminal proceedings, to present documents certifying that he suffers from a mental illness that excludes criminal responsibility,” the Prosecutor’s Office wrote to the court.
The document also indicates that Bozhanov had access to the personal data of people hospitalized at the facility. “Bozhanov subsequently obtained information about the properties they owned and, taking advantage of their mental illness, acquired those properties, which were initially transferred to persons close to Bozhanov,” the application states.
A few days ago, acting Prosecutor General Vanya Stefanova told Bulgarian National Television (BNT) that measures had been taken and investigative actions had been activated both in the extortion case against Petyo Petrov, known as “Evroto,” and in the pre-trial proceedings “concerning the property fraud group of Martin Bozhanov – the Notary.”
In her statement, Stefanova did not mention the available evidence that Bozhanov had exerted influence over members of the judiciary.