Yavor Zlatanov: Pepi Evroto Is Still the Master of Bulgaria’s Prosecutor’s Office
“The court took an important step by officially recognizing that I was right and that the Prosecutor’s Office acted unlawfully and criminally against me. But this is only a moral victory, because the problem lies in the symbolic nature of the compensation. I was unlawfully deprived of my liberty for one purpose only – to be robbed, ruined, crushed and harassed. I was pushed to the brink of death and had to choose between my life and transferring my business to Pepi Evroto,” Zlatanov said on the morning TV programme Hello, Bulgaria.
Asked whether he expected the court ruling to lead to new cases and further investigations into individuals mentioned in connection with the case, the businessman was categorical:
“No, I don’t. Because those who bring the charges are subordinate to Pepi Evroto. They deliberately formulate the charges in such a way that they cannot be upheld by any court.
“I am convinced that Pepi Evroto is still calling the shots. Until the Supreme Judicial Council is replaced, Pepi Evroto will remain the master of our Prosecutor’s Office.
“I would seek personal accountability from prosecutor Peychinov, prosecutor Moysev, Frantishek Petrov, Angel Kanev and others. They committed criminal offences with the aim of robbing me, taking over everything I had built up over the years and lawfully owned.”
Zlatanov said he found it insulting that, “for this entire affair involving the gold and money taken from me, Petyo Evroto was convicted of document fraud and has to pay just over €2,500.”
“This shows that in Bulgaria prosecutors can commit whatever crimes they want and remain unpunished,” he stressed.
Zlatanov also spoke about what he went through in 2019.
“My youngest child was born on 11 July. On 17 July, one day after the baby was discharged from the maternity ward, they stormed into our home, dragged me out, and took all my cars, all my gold and all my money. They seized my factory and put me in detention. My wife, who had just given birth, was forced to run around everywhere trying to sort things out.
“While I was in detention, they threw my security guards out of the factory and took control of the business with the help of specialised police forces sent by Petyo Evroto,” he recalled.
He added:
“I lost my business while I was locked behind bars. Then they ruined my health as well. They kept me in detention in Banishora for 36 days while I was suffering from urosepsis. My weight dropped to 68–69 kilograms. I looked like a walking skeleton. The doctor at the detention facility would tell me every day: ‘Yavor, every hour matters for you. I don’t know why the prosecutors are keeping you here instead of allowing you to receive treatment, because we cannot treat you here.’
“In the end, just before I died, they took me to Lozenets Hospital, where Dr Boril Petrov saved my life. But the torture and pressure continued until they got what they wanted – the shares in my business.”
The full interview with Yavor Zlatanov