Two days ago, two employees of the Ministry of Transport demanded a bribe from two international TIR trucks transporting equipment for the Robbie Williams concert in Sofia. As expected, the scandal is quickly gaining momentum, and the first international publications are already a fact.
A publication by FOX 41 Yakima reads:
"Two Bulgarian officials have been fired for demanding bribes from a convoy of trucks carrying equipment for the tour of British pop star Robbie Williams, authorities said Monday.
Transport officials asked truck drivers for 500 euros during a routine traffic check, using Google Translate when the British drivers could not understand their request, Police Commissioner Lyubomir Nikolov said at a press conference.
"They even asked those who did not have cash to go to an ATM," he said.
Taking bribes is a widespread practice in Bulgaria. But the incident, which happened on Thursday near the capital Sofia, surprised the drivers of Williams' tourist convoy, who filed a complaint.
Transport Minister Grozdan Karadjov told local media that the two long-serving employees had been fired as a result.
The two were also detained on Sunday and charged, Sofia deputy prosecutor Desislava Petrova told AFP.
“Robbie Williams is more effective in fighting corruption than Bulgarian institutions,“ joked an internet wit in Bulgaria, the European Union's poorest country.
Road traffic is a “gold mine” for corrupt Bulgarian officials, said Tihomir Bezlov, an expert on organized crime at the think tank “Center for the Study of Democracy” in Sofia.
Williams, the 51-year-old singer-songwriter known for hits such as "Rock DJ", "Come Undone" and "Angels", performed in Sofia on Sunday night as part of his "Britpop" tour.
From the British news agency "Reuters" also covered the scandal:
The Executive Agency for the Automobile Administration suspended two employees for demanding bribes from truck drivers delivering equipment for a concert by British singer Robbie Williams, the Bulgarian news agency BTA reported on Monday.
Williams performed in the Bulgarian capital Sofia on Sunday night as part of his "Britpop" tour.
In the run-up to the incident, five trucks were stopped and questioned about their speedometers at the "Black Cat" checkpoint on September 25.
Two drivers gave 200 leva, and one paid 300 euros, while the others refused.
The head of the Sofia Directorate of Internal Affairs, Lyubomir Nikolov, said that the employees even used the Google Translate tool to demand the bribes. During searches of the employees' cars, offices and homes, around 43,000 euros and over 5,000 leva were found, with some of the money stuffed into cigarette boxes.
The Sofia Prosecutor's Office has filed charges against the two men, while the traffic control agency has suspended them from their posts and launched an internal investigation.
Yahoo, Channels Television and the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal also wrote about the case.