Bulgarian deputy minister resigns
14/06/2009
SOFIA, Bulgaria -- Bulgarian Deputy Interior Minister Raif Mustafa offered his resignation on Saturday (June 13th) following media reports suggesting his involvement in a corruption scandal. In a statement, Mustafa said he does not want to harm the image of his Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), a partner in the current ruling coalition, ahead of the parliamentary elections on July 5th.
While Mustafa did not elaborate on the specific corruption case, media reports suggested his resignation may be linked to Thursday's arrest of a businessman from the AvtoEngineering company. Police say the detained person was caught offering a 50,000-euro bribe to a high-ranking public servant, who refused to accept it. (BGNES, Darik, Trud, Vesti, BNR, bTV, Sofia news agency - 13/06/09)