Bulgarian police have interrogated a former gambling kingpin over the murder of the country’s ex-security chief. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

Police seek murder leads

Police in Bulgaria have raided the offices of ex-gambling kingpin Vassil Bozhkov and interrogated him over possible links to the slaying of the ex-secretary of the country’s national security agency, DANS, Aleksei Petrov.

gunned down in August 2023 while out walking

Petrov was gunned down in August 2023 while out walking on Vistosha Mountain near the Hungarian capital of Sofia.

bne IntelliNews quoted Bulgaria’s state news agency BTA as citing Bozhkov’s confirmation of the raid and his interrogation. The country’s Ministry of Interior released a short statement that said the raids were related to Petrov’s murder.

“They were searching for documents related to companies that are not related to me except for one. The names of these companies mean nothing to me,” Bozhkov stated of the Friday raid.

The 67-year-old former gambling tycoon, once described as Bulgaria’s richest man, has been a murder suspect ever since Petrov’s death.

Bozhkov points finger

Not only has Bozhkov repeatedly denied any involvement in Petrov’s murder, he also decided to voluntarily return to Bulgaria after the former security chief’s death.

Bozhkov fled to Dubai in 2020 after Bulgaria’s former chief prosecutor leveled multiple charges against him, including blackmail, extortion, tax evasion, organizing attempted murders, and owning unregistered antiques.

On his return to Bulgaria in the summer of 2023, police arrested Bozhkov and subsequently released him under house arrest.

Bozhkov, meanwhile, has made explosive claims against the former Bulgarian Prime Minister and current leader of the ruling Gerb party, Boyko Borissov, and his ex-Finance Minister, Vladislav Goranov.

Bozhkov claims the pair pocketed significant bribes from him in return for shielding his gambling business from scrutiny.

Despite the billionaire’s testimonies, Bulgaria’s prosecution ended its probe into Borissov and Goranov, stating that Bozhkov’s allegations lacked sufficient evidence.

Complex ties

For the deceased Petrov, assassination attempts were nothing new, having escaped several in his past. In the months leading to his murder, Petrov became more active publicly, even offering his services to DANS. Local media reported this was “a sign of improved relations” between Petrov and Borissov, who co-owned a company together in the 1990s.

According to Bloomberg, Vassil Bozhkov’s gambling business generated over a billion euros in annual revenue and he was known in crime circles by his nickname “the Skull.” Bozhkov owned gambling company IGM, sports betting agency Eurofootball, opened a casino in Sofia’s Rila Hotel in Sofia, and co-owned the casinos and bingo halls at Radisson SAS and Hemus.

Petrov was also the founder of two insurance companies that allegedly blackmailed businesses into paying for protection.