Parliament Hears Representatives of State Agencies and the Executive over Six Violent Deaths

Nikolay Zabov

Parliament in session, Sofia, February 11, 2026 (BTA Photo/Milena Stoykova)

Sofia,

11.02.2026 21:58

(BTA)

On Wednesday, Parliament held a hearing with outgoing Minister of Environment and Water Manol Genov, representatives of the Ministry of Interior, acting chief of the State Agency for National Security (SANS) Denyo Denev, and Chair of the State Agency for Child Protection (SACP) Teodora Ivanova regarding the six bodies that were found with gunshot wounds between February 2 and February 8. The bodies were of five men and a 15-year-old boy.

Part of the hearing was held behind closed doors in order to have specific questions from MPs answered, such as whether members of the NGO National Protected Areas Control Agency had cooperated with SANS and whether the NGO had any interaction with similar organizations outside the country. The National Protected Areas Control Agency is believed to have used the Petrohan lodge, where the first three bodies were discovered, as its base.

Both There Is Such a People and Vazrazhdane proposed that Parliament should hear outgoing Interior Minister Daniel Mitov on the case, however, he sent a letter to report that he would be unable to attend Parliament sittings between February 11 and 13. The Ministry was represented by Deputy Ministers Toni Todorov and Filip Popov.

Before the hearing, Todorov told reporters that the authorities continue to work on the Petrohan case and that once everything is done, the public will learn what actually happened. He added: "There is investigative secrecy, and there are things that cannot be made public at this stage. This is an extremely difficult case to investigate, because there are many possible versions. Each of them has to be examined very thoroughly in order to reach a result that satisfies everyone and reveals the objective truth of the case." Todorov suggested that the investigation cannot be completed in less than three weeks.

During the hearing, Popov reported that the first three bodies were found on February 2, after an alert was received via the 112 emergency number at around 11:30 a.m. A person had found the three bodies in front of the Petrohan lodge, which had partially burned in a fire. The men were identified as Ivaylo Ivanov, Plamen Statev, and Decho Vasilev. Near the bodies, investigators found a firearm loaded with 13 rounds and a cartridge in the chamber; another firearm loaded with 12 rounds and a cartridge in the chamber; and a rifle containing a spent casing and no ammunition.

The men found near Okolchitsa Peak on February 8 were identified as Ivaylo Kalushev and Nikolay Zlatkov. The third body belonged to a 15-year-old boy.

Chief Commissioner Zahari Vaskov, Director of the National Police General Directorate, told Parliament that a probe had been ordered into the issuance of firearms permits to the people found dead in the Petrohan case. Ivaylo Kalushev was owner of the Petrohan lodge and head of the NGO styling itself National Protected Areas Control Agency.

A firearms permit was issued in the name of Ivaylo Ivanov by the Police Precinct Department in Montana, Northwestern Bulgaria, on August 23, 2021. The permit includes 16 items, among them five smoothbore shotguns, three rifled bore carbines and two barrels for smoothbore shotguns. Vaskov said he had ordered a probe into the way permits were issued by the Dangerous Weapons Control Service.

Ivaylo Kalushev was issued a permit on November 1, 2021, again by the Police Precinct Department in Montana, for a Glock and a Colt pistol.

Nikolay Zlatkov held a permit for one Heckler & Koch pistol, issued on February 24, 2023.

In 2022, the National Police General Directorate was tipped off about an agreement signed between the NGO and the Environment Ministry. An inspection was carried out by the economic police, additional materials were obtained, statements were taken, and the case file was forwarded to the Sofia City Prosecution Office (SCPO). In 2024, two identical reports were filed in which the NGO was mentioned; they were submitted by grandparents who complained that a child's parents failed to provide adequate care and that the grandparents' access to the child was restricted. An inspection was conducted and the reports were attached to the existing case file sent to the SCPO.

On 13 June 2024, SANS received a report from citizens regarding the National Protected Areas Control Agency NGO, Denev told Parliament. On 15 June 2024, a second report from the same individuals was sent to SANS’s official email. Both reports were addressed to the SACP, the Ministry of Interior, the Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Bulgaria, and SANS.

On 17 June 2024, SANS received a notarized declaration from the report submitters withdrawing their complaints. Nevertheless, the Agency took steps to verify the claims made in the reports, and the results were forwarded in February 2025 to the SCPO.

In the context of the activities conducted by the National Protected Areas Control Agency NGO, the Agriculture and Food Ministry told BTA that the state forestry enterprises and the Executive Forest Agency have not concluded agreements with NGOs regarding their supervisory activities. The Petrohan lodge where the first three bodies were found is located within the State Forestry Enterprise - Godech territorial division, part of the Northwestern State Enterprise. Five forest rangers work in that division. No reports have been received from the NGO in the Regional Forestry Directorates of Sofia and Berkovitsa, or in the State Forestry Enterprise - Godech division.

No reports of illegal logging in the area around the Petrohan lodge have been received since 2018. The Ministry further noted that the area is not considered a hotspot for illegal logging.

Parliament in session, Sofia, February 11, 2026 (BTA Photo/Milena Stoykova)

/DS/