Magnitsky-sanctioned politician and constitutional judge at centre of Bulgaria flight scandal

A political row involving a sitting Constitutional Court judge and one of Bulgaria’s most controversial political figures has escalated into a major political scandal, after the interior minister announced that the judge travelled on private flights with Magnitsky-sanctioned politician Delyan Peevski.

The dispute began after Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev told parliament that information gathered by the Interior Ministry suggested that Constitutional Court judge Desislava Atanassova had travelled on a private flight to Dubai together with Delyan Peevski, leader of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS), in early April 2024.

Peevski has been sanctioned by both the United States and the United Kingdom under the Global Magnitsky sanctions regime over alleged corruption.

According to Demerdzhiev, Atanassova was already serving as a Constitutional Court judge at the time of the alleged trip. “Such a combination would raise extremely serious questions in any civilised country,” the minister told lawmakers.

Atanassova swiftly rejected the allegations, publishing a statement together with a certificate from Sofia’s police directorate showing that, during the relevant period, she had travelled only to Istanbul on a regular Turkish Airlines flight.

She also released copies of pages from her diplomatic passport showing Turkish entry and exit stamps corresponding to those dates.

However, Demerdzhiev later claimed in an interview with Bulgarian National Television that Atanasova had used both her diplomatic and personal passports during the same journey.

“Mrs Atanassova forgot to mention that she used both her diplomatic and ordinary passports during these trips,” he said, urging the constitutional judge to be “more precise” when presenting the facts. Asked whether both passports could legally be used during a single journey, the minister replied that although such practice was “not appropriate”, it was technically possible.

He also said that Atanassova’s ordinary passport had been returned at her request earlier this year and subsequently destroyed.

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Investigation widens

Demerdzhiev said the information presented to parliament had been collected by Bulgaria’s General Directorate for Combating Organised Crime (GDBOP) following several reports concerning Peevski’s use of private aircraft.

According to the data cited by the minister, Peevski has taken 181 private flights since 2018, many of them to Istanbul, from where he allegedly continued to destinations including Greece and the United Arab Emirates.

Bulgarian authorities have requested additional information from Turkey, Greece and the UAE regarding those flights.

The Interior Ministry’s Internal Security Directorate is now examining whether flight records have been manipulated.

“There are many more flights where the departure and arrival dates of the same individuals coincide remarkably,” Demerdzhiev said.

“The connection does not disappear. Some people simply made efforts to manipulate certain data. The full information will become public.”

The minister also announced that authentic text messages linked to the inquiry would soon be made public, stressing that the Internal Security investigation targets ministry officials rather than politicians.

He added that investigators were examining who financed the private flights, whether the funds belonged to Peevski or members of his family, and whether any financial transactions could amount to violations of the Magnitsky sanctions regime.

“Our goal is to establish whether a crime has been committed or whether the Magnitsky sanctions have been circumvented,” Demerdzhiev said.

He also warned Atanasova against attempting to challenge the investigation. “I would not advise Mrs Atanasova to dig too deeply into this issue because the more it is investigated, the more interesting facts and circumstances emerge,” he said.

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Political reactions

Speaking on Bulgarian National Radio, Progressive Bulgaria MP Yavor Gechev suggested that Peevski and Atanasova could have boarded a private aircraft from Istanbul to Dubai, adding that Bulgarian authorities were still awaiting information from foreign institutions.

Peevski rejected the criticism, insisting that his private travel was financed entirely by himself and his family.

“My private life is my own business and nobody else’s, provided no public resources have been used,” he said.

Regarding the Magnitsky sanctions, Peevski argued that they do not apply within Bulgaria. Demerdzhiev strongly rejected this statement.

The controversy has also reignited debate over how Bulgarian institutions implement sanctions imposed by foreign governments.

Recent media reports have shown that Bulgarian politicians sanctioned under the U.S. Global Magnitsky Act continue to receive their parliamentary salaries through the banking system.

MPs’ salaries are paid exclusively by bank transfer. According to information provided by the parliamentary administration to EUalive’s partner Dnevnik, Peevski and former finance minister Vladislav Goranov, who is also subject to U.S. sanctions, continue to receive their salaries through bank accounts despite the sanctions.

The case has also renewed scrutiny of Atanassova, a former senior figure in Boyko Borissov’s GERB party, who was elected to the Constitutional Court in early 2024 with the backing of the then-governing parliamentary majority, including DPS. Her appointment was opposed by lawyers’ associations and judicial watchdog organisations, which questioned her professional qualifications for the post.

The scandal has put additional pressure on Bulgaria’s pro-European parties PP and DB, which supported Atanassova’s appointment to the Constitutional Court while governing alongside GERB and the DPS. PP and DB leaders have now admitted that backing her nomination was a mistake and have called for her resignation, arguing that she no longer meets the integrity standards expected of a constitutional judge. However, Bulgaria’s Constitution does not provide a procedure for dismissing a Constitutional Court judge on ethical grounds.

Atanassova currently serves as Bulgaria’s representative to the Venice Commission.

Caption: Before taking the oath as a Constitutional Court judge on 26 January 2024, Desislava Atanasova served as chair of GERB’s parliamentary group. [BTA]