Rumen Petkov has resigned amid increasing criticism of the Government over its failure to combat organised crime.

Mafia-style killings have been a hallmark of Bulgarian life since the collapse of communism in 1989, and successful prosecutions been almost unknown.Bulgaria's Interior Minister Rumen Petkov has resigned amid increasing criticism of the Government over its failure to combat organised crime.The move comes after a scandal in which two senior officials of the Interior Ministry were accused of passing classified information to alleged crime bosses.Many European Union member states were sceptical about Bulgaria joining the bloc in 2007 because of a perception that organised criminal gangs controlled large parts of the economy, and were operating in a climate of impunity.The Bulgarian Government says it has given the issue top priority, but has not been able to point to many tangible successes.
Last weekend alone two prominent Bulgarians - an author of books about the mafia and the head of a company maintaining nuclear plants - were shot dead by unknown attackers.