site.btaPolitical Elite Reacts to Six Violent Deaths Established Since February 2

Six violent deaths that were announced between February 2 and 6 triggered numerous comments from the Bulgarian political elite. On February 2, three men were found shot dead in a privately owned lodge near Petrohan Pass in the Western Balkan Range. On February 8, two men and a 15-year-old boy, all of whom had occupied the lodge, were found dead with gunshot wounds in a camper van in a hard-to-reach mountain area on Okolchitsa Peak. Chief Commissioner and National Police head Zahari Vaskov told reporters that the three individuals found near Okolchitsa were linked to the Petrohan case.

On Monday, Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) announced that it is submitting to the National Assembly a draft resolution obliging the State Agency for National Security and the prosecution service to provide information related to the activities of the non-profit organization National Protected Areas Control Agency. Vaskov reported that there are persons wanted in connection with an NGO. He specified that the NGO's activities are being investigated and added that in 2022, it signed an agreement with the Ministry of Environment and Water regarding nature conservation in the area of Petrohan.

On Monday, Vazrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov said that Sofia Mayor Vassil Terziev should resign, after the latter suggested that the victims of the first suspected murder case were good men who had "chosen to fight a brutal enemy in an unequal battle" for nature protection. Kostadinov alleged that Terziev and CC-DB were linked to a "probable paedophile sect".

There Is Such a People leader Slavi Trifonov wrote in Facebook on Monday that CC-DB supports the existence of the National Protected Areas Control Agency. He listed Sofia Mayor Terziev, former minister of environment and water in CC's cabinet Borislav Sandov, CC-DB MPs Nikolay Denkov and Boyko Rashkov, as well as "DB guru Sasha Bezuhanova" as people who are responsible for the mystery deaths.

On Monday night, outgoing Minister of Environment and Water Manol Genov told Nova TV that all environment ministers after Borislav Sandov attempted to terminate the agreement with the National Protected Areas Control Agency. In 2022, the Environment Ministry represented by Minister Sandov signed a framework agreement on environmental protection with the NGO. According to Sandov, the document did not create rights or obligations for either party and had no financial component. On June 26, 2025, the Environment Ministry terminated the agreement unilaterally after an internal audit found that the document had an unclear subject matter, lacked legal basis and procedure for its conclusion.

Former President (2017-2026) Rumen Radev called the Petrohan case "a political shock and a sign of the country's condition". He said that the tragedy should not overshadow what he called "alarming findings". He drew attention to the registration of the NGO, whose name (National Protected Areas Control Agency) suggested that it had the powers of a state body. According to Radev, it was legitimized by the Environment Ministry in clear violation of established administrative rules.