site.btaPetrohan-Okolchitsa Tragedy Spurs Political Clash, a School Probe and Media Ethics Concerns

Political pressure mounted on Thursday over the Petrohan-Okolchitsa multiple deaths case, as Continue the Change–Democratic Bulgaria (CC-DB) demanded the resignation of acting State Agency for National Security (SANS) Chairman Denyo Denev, accusing him of withholding information from Parliament. Denev categorically denied that SANS officers had been embedded in the NGO linked to the six violent deaths, as CC-DB had suggested. There was also a fiery verbal clash in Parliament between CC-DB and There Is Such a People (TISP), who blamed CC-DB for decisions that pre-dated the Petrohan-Okolchitsa case.

At a parliamentary briefing, CC-DB representatives said Denev had shown "clear disrespect" during a parliamentary hearing by failing to answer whether individuals connected to the National Protected Areas Control Agency (NPACA) had cooperated with or worked for SANS. The party cited information suggesting that at least two members of the group had interacted with the agency and may have been recruited by it. CC leader Assen Vassilev suggested that SANS could be "covering up a crime".

CC-DB said the two individuals in question were among those found dead and called for the declassification of all documents related to the case. 

Denev rejected the accusations, stating that no SANS officers had been present at the Petrohan Lodge or embedded in NPACA. He said that after receiving tipoffs years ago about alleged violations linked to the association, SANS conducted a check and forwarded materials indicating possible crimes to the prosecution service. "SANS has done its job," he said, adding that he was unaware MPs had called for his resignation.

Also on Thursday, the Sofia Appellate Prosecutor’s Office made public the ballistics expert findings and said those indicated that two of the victims found near the Petrohan Lodge died from gunshot wounds to the head at point-blank range, with gunshot residue consistent with weapons recovered at the scene, while further examinations continue to clarify the circumstances of the other deaths.

In Parliament, TISP blamed CC-DB for the licensing of a private school which worked with an NGO that used the Petrohan Lodge as a base, and where one of the Lodge shooting victims, a 15-year-old boy, was a student. They also blamed CC-DB for refusing to back a public register of child sex offenders. CC-DB rejected the accusations and defended its legislative efforts on child protection, including the establishment of a register of convicted sex offenders.

Outgoing Education Minister Krasimir Valchev told reporters as he attended a public event in Sofia, that an inspection of the private secondary school Cosmos was launched after the Petrohan–Okolchitsa deaths and that serious violations were found, including unreported student absences. Inspectors have established that the 15-year-old Petrohan victim had not attended classes since January 5, 2026, and had missed months of school without his absences being recorded. The Minister described the situation as a gross violation of the right to education and said the school could face deregistration, the maximum sanction under the law.

The Cosmos school said in an official statement that the review by the competent authorities is still ongoing, and the process of collecting, analyzing, and cross-checking the relevant documents and facts has not been completed. As a result, no final findings or legal conclusions have been formed. Cosmos emphasized that it is cooperating with the authorities and has provided all requested documentation, including administrative acts, correspondence, student records, and internal registers. Regarding the specific facts, the school noted that its student, Alexander Makulev, enrolled in 2023 and had frequent absences during his studies, of which the school was notified by his parent in advance due to sports activities and participation in international events.

Also on Thursday, the Council for Electronic Media made public the results of its monitoring of media coverage of the Petrohan-Okolchitsa case and said multiple violations of the rules have been established, including serious ethical breaches in the coverage of recent tragic events. Sensitive information about two minors - a 8-year-old and a 15-year-old - was publicly disclosed, violating professional journalistic standards and the Bulgarian Radio and Television Act, which obliges media providers to protect children’s rights. The report also flagged an incident on February 9, when a national programme on Nova TV required a mother of a 22-year-old victim to show her ID on air, exposing her personal data in violation of privacy laws. Members of the Council for Electronic Media, including Gabriela Naplatanova and Kadrinka Kadrinova, stressed that while journalists must seek to provide the public with information, ethical principles should not be compromised. The monitoring noted breaches of the Bulgarian Media Ethical Code, including prioritizing sensationalism over careful reporting. Naplatanova praised journalists who adhered to ethical reporting, demonstrating that high-quality journalism is possible even online, while cautioning against amplifying social tensions or political speculation through unverified hypotheses.

At a press conference on Thursday, President Iliana Iotova expressed hope to see the Petrohan-Okolchitsa case fully resolved. She stated her confidence in Bulgarian institutions, emphasizing that they would carry out their work professionally. Iotova warned against politicizing the tragedy, noting that the easiest response in such situations is to assign blame and turn the issue into a political matter. She urged patience, calling on the public to wait for the facts, to trust the process, and to seek the truth. Earlier in the day, while discussing the priorities of the future caretaker government, Iotova said that addressing the Petrohan-Okolchitsa case is among its key tasks.