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The police have started a full investigation of all violations, acts and sanctions that were imposed during the years of Georgi Semerdzhiev as a driver, who on July 5 caused a serious accident with two victims in Sofia. A full check has also been assigned to all the law enforcement officers who stopped him on various occasions – information is being collected about who, when and for what checked him, what he found, what measures were taken and whether all procedures were followed, the minister explained of Internal Affairs Boyko Rashkov. (Read more here. )
The full reference will take time and will probably be long, as it covers all the years Semerdzhiev drove, but also all the cases for which he was checked and sanctioned.
According to a report that “Dnevnik” saw, the first pre-trial proceedings against him for traffic violations probably date from 2014. and before that there are acts drawn up. The sample also shows some of the sanctions imposed on him over the years and the cases in which he was stopped for checks throughout the country – in Sofia, Nessebar, Blagoevgrad and other cities.
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At least 6 times, the police submitted information to the prosecutor’s office about serious violations by Semerdzhiev, and there is evidence that pre-trial proceedings were initiated. It is not yet known whether they ended, when and in what way, and the prosecutor’s office has not yet provided any information.
He was caught without a license 6 times, 80 points were deducted from him
Semerdzhiev was caught 6 times without a license and has 80 deducted points (with a maximum of 39 in the ticket), explained the head of the capital traffic police commissioner Tencho Tenev. His Bulgarian driver’s license has been revoked since 2005, but until the time of the accident, Semerdzhiev was not only driving actively, but was also stopped often enough by law enforcement officers.
On May 16, 2012, he was stopped in Sofia and two acts were issued to him for driving without registration plates (he was fined BGN 200) and for driving without a valid license (for which he was fined 300 BGN).
Metropolitan police stopped him again on January 18, 2014. He was fined BGN 30 for not returning his international driver’s license after the one in Bulgaria had already been revoked. A pre-trial proceeding has been initiated in the case, but the prosecutor’s office has no information on whether or how it ended.
See how the crash happened here
See how the accident happened on the map here
On June 6, 2014, he was intercepted again by police officers in Nessebar, who found the same violation. He was not fined, but the documents were sent to the prosecutor’s office.
A little later, the metropolitan police imposed a series of fines totaling BGN 120, when he was stopped for a check and various violations were found, such as not carrying documents.
A few months later, on September 18, 2014, he was again stopped for a check in Sofia, and a fine of BGN 1,000 was imposed on him, and the materials were sent to the Sofia District Prosecutor’s Office, which initiated pre-trial proceedings. How the case ended is also unknown.
What are the impromptu racetracks in Sofia – read here
In 2016, another pre-trial proceeding was initiated against him, but there is no information on how far the proceedings have reached.
In recent years, during various checks for which he was stopped, the police officers found a series of violations – that he was driving without a license, that he ran a red light in Sofia. Another preliminary proceeding was instituted after a check found that his car had tinted windows and that he was driving under the influence of drugs.
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Just since the beginning of this year, 3 slips have been compiled for him – that his car has tinted windows, that he does not carry documents and that he has not passed the mandatory annual technical inspection.
They check the checkers
The last case in which Semerdzhiev was stopped for inspection was on June 11 of this year. Then his Swiss driver’s license, which he presented to the examiners as a document certifying legal capacity, was also confiscated. However, while the uniformed officers were making inquiries, he fled with his vehicle and the license remained with the patrol. After the incident, the employees of the 7th Regional Office declared him wanted. Whether he was actually searched, or the search remained only on paper, is still being verified.
Interior Minister Boyko Rashkov confirmed, that it will be checked how the police acted – whether they chased him, whether they wanted information from cameras to find out where he went, etc. “I have doubts that inexplicable inaction was exercised,” commented Rashkov.
Separately, Semerdzhiev is not allowed to drive on Bulgarian roads if his Bulgarian driver’s license is revoked (something that happened back in 2005), regardless of whether he presents a valid document from Switzerland. What’s more, in order for his license to be considered suspended, the driver must be served with a decree, which did not happen on June 11 because he went into hiding. The Minister of the Interior emphasized that in this case, too, it will be checked how the police reacted and whether they took all the actions to search for him, expressing doubt that “inexplicable inaction” was exercised.
Earlier Thursday (July 7) the head of the metropolitan traffic police, Tencho Tenev said earlier today that Semerdzhiev is a repeat offender on the road with a series of violations. “His violations are so many that 85 points were deducted from him – almost three times for 39 points each. This means that he created very serious problems,” explained Tenev.
“Last week, the metropolitan police caught him driving after using drugs. The same driver, after some time, put fake numbers on the car and started driving on the streets of Sofia,” explained Tenev. The head of the “Traffic Police” added that the German license plates of the car from the accident are real, but they are on a car in Germany.
The prosecutor’s office entered into an agreement with him
In addition to traffic violations, the driver is also known to the law enforcement authorities for other crimes.
According to “Dnevnik”, he was sentenced to 8 months in prison for drug distribution.
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The information was later confirmed by Minister Rashkov. His punishment follows an agreement with the prosecution, approved by the court. However, Semerdzhiev did not spend a single day in prison, as he had previously spent 8 months under house arrest, and the term was deducted from his sentence as it was considered time served, law enforcement officials said.
Semerdzhiev is currently on trial for bodily injury he caused during a brawl between football agitators, and the latest hearing in the case was held on Wednesday (July 6), the day of his arrest after the crash. Due to the fact that he did not appear before the Sofia District Court for the hearing, he was also declared wanted by the court.
Doubts that over accusations of the serious accident on Tuesday evening, July 5, Georgi Semerdzhiev has had an umbrella over the years, stepped up Thursday after it became known that he was a prosecution witness in the largest drug-trafficking case in years. The case is against a huge organized criminal group of 41 people, operating since 2014 – the group of Radmil Ranov, known as Rado Lanetsa. The investigation began in 2018 and has already been brought before the Specialized Criminal Court.
Earlier today, the resigned Interior Minister Boyko Rashkov announced that the woman who was in the car together with the causer the serious accident on Cherni Vrah Blvd. in Sofia on Tuesday late evening (July 5), is a police officer. Two young women died in the accident.
Read more
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Read all the most important things about the crash here
See how the crash happened here
See how the accident happened on the map here
What does it tell about the driving style of his arrested brother here
How the wanted driver who caused the deaths of two women was arrested – here
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