The Plovdiv District Court on Sunday remanded 51-year-old Slavcho Megerov in custody on a charge of the premeditated murder of local businessman Ilian Filipov. Filipov was killed on September 30.
Judge Petko Minev said the court had found grounds for imposing the most stringent pretrial measure. Evidence gathered through numerous searches and seizures, footage from multiple cameras, physical evidence, expert reports and witness interviews provided reasonable grounds to suspect Megerov’s involvement. Minev acknowledged defence lawyer Dilyana Agova’s arguments that the weapon had not been found and there were no eyewitnesses to the killing. Nevertheless, the court found a chain of mutually corroborating circumstantial evidence, with nothing in it casting doubt on the conclusion that Megerov had committed the killing, Minev said. The court also found a real risk that he could abscond and commit an offence.
Before the ruling, Prosecutor Dimitar Molev told reporters that there was sufficient evidence to reasonably suspect Megerov of committing the offence with which he had been charged. He declined to say whether the murder weapon had been found, but confirmed that there were no eyewitnesses to the killing. Investigators were pursuing all possible lines of inquiry, and the investigation was not complete. The motive remained personal, involving unresolved financial dealings, Molev said. All possible expert examinations had been commissioned, and their results were pending. He said the killing had taken place in the lobby of a residential building, on the landing by the lifts. Speaking to reporters after the ruling, Molev said the main suspected motive was a large sum of money linked to unregulated sports betting. “The various witness statements refer to amounts between BGN 15,000 and BGN 20,000 given by the victim to the accused for various sporting events, up to several… let’s say several substantial sums. The accused was then supposed to pay the money to the victim,” Molev said.
The court’s reasoning revealed further details about the relationship between the two men and events in the hours before the killing. Filipov was shot once below the eye, immediately outside the lift in the entrance hall of the residential building.
The court found that the evidence collected so far supported the prosecution’s initial classification of the offence. The judges said there were indications of premeditation: the perpetrator had obtained a weapon, waited for the victim and taken a series of steps to cover his tracks after the shooting.
Numerous witnesses have already been questioned. Although the investigation is at an early stage, some statements point to unregulated sports betting, financial dealings between Filipov and Megerov, and a serious dispute between them about two weeks before the killing.
Lyudmila Racheva, who had a close relationship with Filipov and found him after he had been shot, has also given evidence. She told investigators that Megerov was involved in unregulated sports betting. She said winnings were passed to Filipov through Megerov’s sister, who lives in Plovdiv.
Although Megerov has been legally rehabilitated and is therefore regarded as having no previous convictions, the court took account of his serious criminal history and past convictions.
The ruling can be appealed before the Plovdiv Court of Appeal within three days. If an appeal is lodged, the hearing will take place on October 13.
Plovdiv Court Remands Businessman’s Murder Suspect in Custody 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-10-04 18:04:13
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