site.btaSofia District Court Keeps Four Protest Detainees in Custody

Sofia District Court ordered four people detained during the Monday protest in the capital to remain in custody on Thursday.

The four individuals are Zhulian Zhelyazkov, Kristiyan Yonchev, Lachezar Tuleshkov and Martin Ivanov, who have been charged with hooliganism during the protest. The decision is subject to appeal and protest.

According to the court, there are reasonable grounds to believe that each of the four defendants committed the offences with which they are charged. There is no risk that any of them will abscond, but there is a risk that they may commit further offences. It has not yet been established whether anyone was injured as a result of their actions, but such a circumstance is not required for the acts to be regarded as having an elevated degree of danger.

Witnesses Kiril Petrov and Kaloyan Dimitrov, employees of the Sofia Directorate of the Interior, said that they saw a group of six or seven individuals throwing firecrackers at the Council of Ministers building and at the police officers stationed in front of it. The group initially mingled with the crowd without wearing masks, but when they began throwing the firecrackers, they moved to the front and put masks on. After the group left, the police officers, having remembered their appearance, followed them and subsequently detained them.

The lawyers for the four defendants argued that the charges are based solely on the testimony of the two police officers and that there is no concrete evidence identifying who committed the acts. They also noted that no residue tests were conducted on the hands of those accused of throwing the firecrackers.

On Wednesday, the Regional Prosecutor's Office in Sofia said it was investigating 16 pre-trial proceedings for hooliganism related to the Monday protest against the 2026 State Budget Bill held in downtown Sofia. Fourteen people aged 18 to 36 have been charged, ten of whom were initially detained for up to 72 hours. According to the prosecution, some of the defendants overturned waste containers and threw stones, pyrotechnics, and bottles at police, injuring three officers; several suspects reportedly have prior criminal records. Investigators are reviewing video footage, questioning witnesses, and considering requests for continued detention. Despite these incidents, the head of the Sofia Directorate of the Interior, Chief Commissioner Lyubomir Nikolov, described the protest as generally peaceful, noting a total of 71 arrests.

Earlier on Thursday, Interior Minister Dimitar Mitov told Parliament that Sofia Municipality had authorised only a static protest in the capital on December 1, not a march, and that securing an unapproved route was therefore impossible. He said police had set up 21 checkpoints, but part of the crowd nonetheless moved along an unauthorised route. According to Mitov, officers used pepper spray but no physical force to contain the situation. He reported that 75 people were detained in connection with the unrest, 23 of whom were already known to the authorities from previous incidents at protests.

Mitov also told Parliament that there was no reason for him to resign. He noted that grounds for resignation could exist if an incident had occurred resulting in mass casualties or serious health problems, or if there were a debate over whether the police had used excessive force or violence.

Continue the Change Co-chair Assen Vassilev and Yes, Bulgaria Co-chair Ivaylo Mirchev called on Interior Minister Daniel Mitov to resign, saying that he had allowed police officers to be assaulted during a peaceful protest and a peaceful march. Continue the Change – Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) Deputy Floor Leader Bozhidar Bozhanov said "a handful of provocateurs", instigated by the government, and "most likely from Movement for Rights and Freedoms – New Beginning Chair and Floor Leader Delyan Peevski himself", drew media attention away from the protest main objective, "because the police response was inadequate."