The Sofia City Court Monday authorized the issue of European Arrest Warrants (EAWs) for two German nationals accused of setting fire to Starlink antennas near Sofia. The court was asked to authorize the issue of the EAWs by the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office, which is seeking their remand in custody.
The ruling can be appealed within three days.
During the hearing, the prosecution said that Zeka Islam and Tirpan Beytulllah (names maybe misspelled) were charged in absentia on October 14 with setting fire to Starlink antennas at the Plana teleport facility near the village of Plana, south of Sofia. If found and convicted, they face prison sentences of between three and 12 years.
According to the prosecution, Islam and Beytullah entered Bulgaria through the Kalotina border checkpoint at 5:37 p.m. on October 9, stayed in the country for several hours and left for Serbia in a German-registered car through the same checkpoint at 11:55 p.m. Upon entering Bulgaria, they said they were visiting for tourism.
The indictment states that at around 10:25 p.m. on October 9, the two set fire to the antennas. Three were completely destroyed by the flames, two were partially damaged and three others were otherwise affected. Gloves and masks were used in the crime.
The two men hold personal documents issued in Germany indicating that they were born in 2007. Their current whereabouts are unknown, according to information from the German authorities.
Zdravko Stoychev, court-appointed defence lawyer for Tirpan Beytulllah, said photographs had been included in the case file and that the vehicle used by the two accused had been identified, but not the men themselves. He argued that the assumption that the defendants had committed the offence had been weakened.
Zhanet Manasieva, court-appointed defence lawyer for Zeka Islam, said it had been established that two people had carried out the arson attack. However, she argued that the grounds for suspecting Islam and Beytulllah of being the perpetrators were debatable. “It may ultimately turn out that these are not the people who committed the criminal act,” she added, asking the court to reject the requests for remand in custody and the issuance of European Arrest Warrants.
The court found the defence’s objections unfounded, concluding that there were reasonable grounds to suspect the two accused of involvement in the offence.
The court-appointed lawyers told reporters they would appeal the ruling.
The burning of the Starlink antennas was first reported by Democratic Bulgaria MP Ivaylo Mirchev who said in a Facebook post on October 12 that 11 antennas used to communicate with Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite communications system, were deliberately set on fire at a secret facility near Sofia. He wrote that the damaged antennas provide a key link to Elon Musk’s satellites in space, which are also actively used in the war in Ukraine. According to Mirchev, two masked men set fire to 11 of the 17 SpaceX antennas at the site used to connect to Starlink satellites.
During a parliamentary hearing on security issues October 14, Prime Minister Rumen Radev said that an investigation is underway of the Starlink antenna fire and urged patience regarding its results. The PM also requested that the chair of the State Agency for National Security, who also spoke during the hearing, not reveal any details. “It is a matter of very little time, we are working with partner services, for this operation to be successfully concluded. If what exactly has been established is revealed, there will not be the result we are striving for. A little more patience, you will have a result. At the moment, no more will be shared”, said Radev.
On October 15, Interior Ministry Secretary General Lyubomir Nikolov told reporters that there are suspects in the arson attack but declined to provide details as it might jeopardize the investigation.
In a Facebook post after the court’s decision, Ivaylo Mirchev wrote: “Now, the PM, personally, owes the public an explanation as to what has been achieved, what has been overlooked, and who bears responsibility. Need we remind everyone that for three days the Interior Ministry and the security services kept silent and concealed the incident”.
Two Germans Charged over Starlink Antenna Arson in Bulgaria, Court Authorises European Arrest Warrants 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-19 14:38:00
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