Bulgaria Arrests Suspected Terror Financiers

The Bulgarian Prosecution announced on Saturday that it has indicted six people, five of whom are in custody, for the alleged illicit money transfer of over 25 million euros and smuggling at least 100 vehicles to Syria.

The criminal group is allegedly linked to "terrorist organizations that have engaged in planning terrorist activities in third countries", prosecution spokesperson Rumyana Arnaudova said on Saturday, as quoted by Focus agency.

Five of the six were arrested on Friday in a Special Prosecution operation. The sixth is still at large and has been issued with an international arrest, authorities said.

Five of the six are Syrians legally residing in Bulgaria. The sixth is a Bulgarian woman.

On Friday, a total of 43 people were arrested across Bulgaria in relation to an illegal money-transferring scheme.

But Special Prosecution Office chief Ivan Geshev dismissed the possibility that this so-called "Hawala" ("transfer" or "trust" in Arabic) Group aimed at organizing terrorist acts in Bulgaria.

Hawala refers to a parallel system of sending remittances, sometimes referred to as "underground banking". It is often linked to the funding of criminal activities, as it precludes paper trails and is based on social bonds and trust.

The Prosecution spokesperson said the organization had operated from 2016 onwards and had laundered at least 25 million euros and participated in the purchase and smuggling of 100 vehicles towards Syria.

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