The Court of Appeal in Sofia has finally confirmed the decision of the first instance, which did not allow consideration of the request for conditional early release of Evelin Banev, better known as Brendo, Nova TV reported.
The court panel has ruled that the appeal is inadmissible, which is why the proceedings in the case remain suspended. The decision of the appellate magistrates is final and cannot be appealed.
This is the second procedure for Banev's early release from prison. A case was initiated several months ago following a proposal by the management of the Sofia Prison. The arguments cited were that more than half of the sentence had been served, as well as evidence of a positive change in the prisoner's behavior.
Banev is currently serving a six-year sentence imposed by a Bulgarian court for participation in an organized criminal group and for laundering funds related to international drug trafficking.
Brendo returned to Bulgaria on June 24, 2024, when he voluntarily appeared before the authorities in the presence of his lawyer. At that time, he was the subject of an international wanted list due to convictions that had entered into force in Bulgaria, Romania, and Italy.
His search began in May 2018, after the Supreme Court of Cassation finally confirmed his six-year sentence for laundering money derived from drug trafficking. Previously, Romanian authorities sentenced him to 10 years in prison for drug trafficking, and an Italian court imposed a 20-year sentence on him in the large-scale investigation known as the “Cocaine Kings“.
In 2012, Banev was handed over to Italian authorities, but subsequently returned to Bulgaria due to pending proceedings against him.