Gordan Kalajdzhiev: Procedure violated and executive interference alleged in the 'Mazut' case

Criminal law professor Gordan Kalajdzhiev sharply criticized the proceedings in the so‑called "Mazut" case and warned of improper influence from the executive branch.

Legal points and a stark allegation

Kalajdzhiev set out several procedural objections and argued that the handling of the investigation departs from rules established in the country's criminal and prosecution legislation. In a post he wrote that the procedure has been violated and listed three concrete legal points.

He wrote: "In the Mazut case the procedure has been raped: 1) a higher prosecutor compared to the prosecutor in the local Public Prosecutor's Office is the Republic Public Prosecutor; (this is clear from the Law on the Public Prosecution, the fact that senior prosecutors act on appeals before the Court of Appeal is another matter, there is no conflict there) 2) the right to appeal belongs only to a person who has reported damage; 3) a senior public prosecutor cannot order new expert examinations (the Criminal Procedure Code only provides for the possibility that an expert opinion be returned because of some weaknesses by the same expert). Violations of procedures and similar errors are nothing new, but here we have direct interference by the executive branch and a demonstration of force: you'll see!!", he wrote.

Kalajdzhiev emphasized that while procedural mistakes occur in many cases, his concern in this instance is the apparent role of executive power in steering the process — an action he described as a demonstration of force rather than an ordinary legal correction.

No additional official reactions or statements from prosecutorial or governmental bodies were included in his post. Kalajdzhiev's public criticism adds pressure to an investigation that has already drawn wide attention.

Photo: press material from the event