The documents concerning the financial operations of Kintex to offshore areas to be immediately sent to the Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Bulgaria for alleged crime. This was ordered today by the Minister of Economy and Industry Nikola Stojanov. It should be recalled that on 11.08.2022, the State Agency for National Security entered the arms company, and it was later confirmed that for 1 day about BGN 800 000 were paid to a company in Dubai.
On the instructions of the offshore company, Kintex has transferred large sums of money to Bulgarian companies and legal entities in the Balkans, which at this point it is unclear what relation they have to the activities of the arms dealer. It is likely that these destinations have been chosen to circumvent the rigorous banking checks that are mandatory when dealing with arms companies with offshore counterparties. Through the use of financial intermediaries, these procedures were shortened, most likely in order to pass the transfers in the days between the change of the previous and current Minister of Economy.
This morning, on the air of BTV, a journalistic investigation was broadcast, which shows a number of questionable circumstances. The facts shown once again raise doubts about the timing of the actions and the possible damage to the state-owned company. The full story can be seen here.
It should be recalled that on 18.04.2022, the previous Minister of Economy and Industry personally announced the change in the management of Kintex. The previous executive director of the SCC Smilyana Nitova, when the money transfers to Dubai became public, repeatedly denied wrongdoing at the arms company by her appointed management. The latest statements contrast with the journalistic investigation broadcast today, which is why it is necessary to examine all possibilities of third party involvement in the actions of Kintex.
Last week an official request was received from BTV on the topics covered in the report. By an official letter dated 26 August 2022, the SCC has ordered the management of Kintex to immediately answer the questions sent to the camera and explain what necessitated these actions. Despite the written order from their principal (owner), they have stopped answering their phones, which is another signal of wrongdoing that should be investigated by the Prosecutor’s Office.
The management of Kintex, which made the payments of BGN 800 000 for 1 day to an offshore company in Dubai, was dismissed last week. The only expert remaining on the board from the previous period voted against these actions at a meeting of the governing body. Despite his dissent, two foreign exchange remittances were operationally prepared and executed, and it is likely that subsequent remittances were only stopped due to the intervention of SANS.
It was only on Monday, 29.08.2022, after the inauguration of the new management, that the journalists’ questions were answered in a volume safe for the company’s commercial activities.