Opinion ID: 435925
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The facts leading to this appeal

Text: 5 Appellee, Penyu Baychev Kostadinov, is an employee of the Bulgarian Ministry of Foreign Trade, and serves as an assistant commercial counselor in that country's New York trade office. With the permission of the United States, the Bulgarian Legation (later Embassy) in Washington opened the New York office in 1963 for the purpose of promoting trade between the two countries. Bulgaria designated a commercial counselor to head up this office, and he was specifically granted diplomatic immunity by the United States Government. This government recognizes the premises housing the New York office as part of the premises of the Bulgarian Embassy in Washington. 6 The record reflects that on September 23, 1983, Kostadinov met with another individual in a restaurant in Manhattan. There he purchased from that individual a secret document entitled Report on Inspection of Nevada Operations Office, which concerned various security procedures for American nuclear weapons. At that meeting Kostadinov paid the individual $300, arranged to meet the person again to make further payment, and gave the person a list of thirty additional classified documents which Kostadinov wanted to acquire. Unbeknown to Kostadinov, the individual had been providing information to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, whose agents recorded the meeting on audio and videotape. FBI agents arrested Kostadinov as he left the meeting. He subsequently was indicted on one count of attempted espionage, 18 U.S.C. Sec. 794(a) (1982), and one count of conspiracy to commit espionage, 18 U.S.C. Sec. 794(c) (1982). 7 Kostadinov moved before Judge Broderick to dismiss the indictment, claiming that he had diplomatic immunity from criminal prosecution under the provisions of the Convention. Judge Broderick granted Kostadinov's motion, finding that since the New York trade office at which Kostadinov worked was a part of the Bulgarian Embassy, the title assistant commercial counselor makes him a member of the staff of the embassy 1 as defined by the Convention, entitling him to immunity. 2