The Varna Court of Appeal finally allowed the execution of a European arrest warrant for a Bulgarian wanted by the German authorities for criminal prosecution. It was issued by the District Court in Bamberg, and 28-year-old Nikola B. is wanted for his involvement in an organized criminal group for fraud and computer crimes, reported by the Bulgarian court.
This is another case of a young man being handed over from a call center for trial in Germany. Calculations indicate that such a threat affects more than 5,000 people. Of those surrendered, there are already several cases of effective convictions.
The frauds for which the Bulgarian is accused were carried out from January 2019 to December 2020, with the affected people living in different settlements in Germany. According to the Penal Code of the Federal Republic, the maximum sentence for the crimes of which the Bulgarian is accused is 15 years in prison. Nikola B. was arrested on October 25, 2023 in Varna.
Another alarming information about 15 Bulgarians who worked in call centers with a European Arrest Warrant. There are already guys serving time in a German prison.
Together with his colleagues, some of whom were also wanted by Germany, the young man worked in a call center with offices in Bulgaria. The employees presented themselves with false identities on the phone and via e-mail to customers in Germany, assured them that they worked for various online platforms and, with promises of large profits, persuaded them to invest significant sums in financial instruments. Instead of being deposited, the deposited funds were transferred to group accounts.
The main dispute between the parties is about where the crime was committed. The representative of the Appellate Prosecutor’s Office accepts that the fraud was completed at the place of the property damage – where the disposal of funds took place, namely in Germany. The defense considers that there is no evidence of harmed German citizens, i.e. no cheating.
The lawyers argue that the act was partially committed in our country, and in these cases the Bulgarian law is applicable. If there was any damage, it was not done by the wanted person, because Nikola did not handle financial means, but only offered products owned by the company – his employer.
At least 12 Bulgarians from call centers have already received effective sentences, and there is even a sentence of 4.6 years in prison. This became clear from a conversation with Nino Goldbeck, a prosecutor in the Central Office in Germany, in the program “On Focus” on Nova TV.
According to German authorities, the 28-year-old man was part of a criminal group of individuals who knowingly and deliberately joined together to carry out a sustained, joint “cyber-commerce fraud”. As described in the European Arrest Warrant, as a result of his phone calls, Nikola made 40 deposits in the amount of 328,951 euros. No pre-trial proceedings have been conducted against him in Bulgaria for the acts in question.
The Varna Court of Appeal is categorical that for a comprehensive and effective investigation, given the cross-border specifics of the crime, priority should be given to the jurisdiction of the issuing country. A criminal prosecution has been initiated there, the victims of the acts are there, evidence has been gathered there. Therefore, by handing over the requested person to the German judicial authorities, he will have a real opportunity to fully and effectively implement his defense, including by participating in the process of gathering evidence, the Bulgarian magistrates claim.
Germany has guaranteed the possibility of the Bulgarian being returned to his homeland to serve a potentially effective punishment.
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2024-01-05 04:32:58
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