Yesterday I found out that there are cameras in the toilets. I didn't put them in. This was stated by the detained director of the capital's 138th school "Prof. Vasil Zlatarski" Alexander Evtimov to journalists before the session of the Sofia District Court this evening.
Earlier, the SDVR revealed details of the investigation against Evtimov. "From the computer in the director's office, through an application, all the recordings were transferred to his mobile phone," said the director of the SDVR, Chief Commissioner Lyubomir Nikolov, at a briefing for journalists.
Two charges have been brought against Evtimov. One is for possession of a special technical device by an official, and the second - for creating pornographic materials with minors, for which he can receive a maximum of 8 years in prison.
The director appealed his 24-hour detention measure. A prosecutor is expected to file a request with the Sofia District Court for permanent arrest against him. The Personal Data Protection Commission has also been notified.
According to Nikolov, on Monday evening, the aunt of a student appeared at the First Regional Department of the State Security Service, who wished to file a report regarding her suspicions that there were cameras in the sanitary facilities that were filming the students.
“Immediately, on the first working day that the school opened, we formed investigative operational groups to verify the information indicated in the report. Arriving on site, our colleagues indeed found that there were sensors in the premises, which were supposed to monitor movement in the toilets. There are also hidden video surveillance cameras”, confirmed Chief Comm. Nikolov.
According to him, with the help of the “Cybersecurity” Directorate, a thorough inspection was carried out and it was established that from these cameras, through special routes, the signal reaches the director's room.
“On this occasion, we immediately began procedural and investigative actions, which we conducted jointly with the Sofia District Prosecutor's Office. We seized all carriers of such information from the director's office. Subsequently, we carried out procedural and investigative actions in his apartment”, said Chief Comm. Nikolov.
Evtimov showed recordings from the cameras to a class teacher of one of the school's classes in order to demonstrate the manifestation of indecent behavior in the sanitary facilities.
“There are a total of 11 cameras installed in the sanitary facilities from the 1st to 3rd floors of the school. There are some that monitor the entire room, and others placed right above the urinals”, Nikolov explained.
He also said that in October an invoice was found proving that the principal, in his own name and at his own expense, had purchased cameras for hidden surveillance.
“We found 11 flash drives, 3 laptops and 3 computer configurations in his home. In the study there was only a DVR that stores the recordings from the cameras and a mobile phone. We are currently checking the contents of the flash drives”, he added.