Bulgarian Mayor Reports AI-Generated Deepfake Corruption Video
A Bulgarian mayor reported that an AI-generated deepfake video depicting him receiving a bribe was posted on Facebook by an anonymous account. He filed complaints with the prosecutor's office and Ministry of Internal Affairs, describing the synthetic video as a malicious defamation campaign designed to damage his reputation.
What happened
An AI-generated video was published on 25 July 2026 in a Facebook group called 'Аз съм от Пазарджик' from an anonymous profile named 'Чичо Чарли' (Uncle Charlie). The deepfake video depicted a municipal employee handing a sealed envelope to Петър Куленски, the mayor of Pazardzhik, with the intention of suggesting corrupt practices.
Куленски reported the video to the Bulgarian Prosecutor's Office and Ministry of Internal Affairs, calling it a deliberate defamatory campaign. He requested the authorities identify the person behind the anonymous profile and obtain all security camera recordings from the location where the original material was filmed to demonstrate what actually occurred.
Reported impact
Куленски characterized the synthetic media as a dangerous manipulation that falsifies reality by adding non-existent actions to video and producing fake evidence. He stated that such use of artificial intelligence to discredit individuals is intolerable and should not occur with impunity.
Index analysis
The mayor warned that artificial intelligence technology enables manipulation of faces, voices, movements and entire situations to create convincing forgeries that can reach thousands of people within minutes. He cautioned that propaganda has never before possessed such a dangerous weapon, and urged citizens to critically assess online content and verify sources rather than accept anonymous posts as evidence.
Classification
Sources and evidence
This record was researched and written by the Index, based on the following original reporting.