Bulgarian NGO Slams Police Work in Teen Murder Case

Тhe Chairman of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, BHC, NGO, Krasimir Kanev. Photo by BGNES

The kidnapping and murder of a Bulgarian teen girl in the western city of Pernik, near Sofia, involves some very controversial theories, confusing explanations, and mindboggling facts, according to the Chairman of the Bulgarian Helsinki Committee, BHC, NGO, Krasimir Kanev.

"How is it possible for a man, guarded by some of the most qualified police officers, to commit suicide, on top of it while being handcuffed? Even a village watchman would not have allowed it," Kanev told Nova TV Tuesday.

One day earlier, the NGO voiced strong doubt in police explanations in the murder of Miroslava Nikolova, 17, whose body was discovered last week, and particularly in the suicide of the main suspect Stoycho Stoev AKA Chocho, who shot himself in the head in the presence of police, who were searching his apartment.

Kanev stressed BHC and the public are expecting clear answers not only from the police, but from the Prosecutor's Office, including if policemen were involved in the kidnapping and the murder.

Miroslava's sister Eleonora insists that after the kidnapping, the two had one telephone conversation, and Miroslava managed to tell her that policemen were involved in the crime. The kidnappers however never called to set their conditions.

The NGO further slammed Interior Minister, Tsvetan Tsvetanov, for excusing the botched investigation and the blunders with the "exhaustion and fatigue" of all involved.

Regarding the second suspect, Mario Lybenov AKA The Rabbit, who is currently listed in a Sofia psychiatry ward, Kanev forecasted that he will be either declared sane and fit to stand trial or will be kept in the psychiatry. Setting him free would not be an option, he said.

Miroslava Nikolova's dead body was found by the police in the suburbs of the city about 11 am last Thursday after two months of active search, which involved the information systems of Schengen and Interpol.

Authorities suspected the girl may have been trafficked aboard as a white slave. Some assumed that she may have fallen in love with someone who is part of a scheme for human trafficking and voluntarily fled the country.

Many locals were inclined to believe that the missing girl ran away from home, a speculation her sister has dismissed as "ridiculous".

Miroslava left her home without documents or money.

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