EditGunshots in the Bulgarian mountains make victims in the upcoming elections
The Petrohan case will not decide the elections, but it reshapes the battlefield, as a culture war now rages against "liberals," NGOs, private education and "non-traditional" religions
Beyond the six people found dead by gunshots in the Bulgarian mountains near Petrohan, there is a seventh casualty: the pro-European coalition We Continue the Change–Democratic Bulgaria (PP-DB), which is slipping further from second place in the upcoming elections.
What began as a grave criminal tragedy involving six gunshot deaths has morphed in Bulgaria into a full-blown “crucify them” campaign. Dubbed “Petrohan-gate,” the case has stigmatized not only one political force but also the broader liberal community and its values. The pro-European coalition PP-DB has been cast as a scapegoat, while non-governmental organizations (NGOs), private education, and non-traditional religions have also been discredited.
Tragedy at 1,470 meters above sea level
In early February, bodies were discovered in the Petrohan and Okolchitsa areas of the Western Balkan Mountains. The victims included founders of an NGO and a 15-year-old boy who had long lived with them. The men presented themselves as mountain “rangers” operating several non-profit organizations ostensibly dedicated to nature conservation.
Their base was a lodge near Petrohan, about 15 km from the Serbian border, purchased in January 2020 for nearly 50,000 euros. The roughly 1,100 sq m building was renovated, secured with cameras and electric fences, and expanded with an additional 5,000 square meters of land bought for 2,500 euros.
The first three bodies were found near the lodge, now partially burnt, with the remaining three discovered days later in a camper van. During this period, the prosecution and Interior Ministry (MVR) withheld clear, timely explanations from the public, fuelling rampant conspiracies and speculation.
To date, no official motive for the killings has been established. Public distrust toward institutions – the Ministry of Interior (MVR), the State Agency for National Security (DANS), and the prosecution – grows, with suspicions they are concealing information, even though roughly 500 pages of investigative materials were sent to parliament.
Leaked details from the investigation – some controlled, some gone wild – have painted a picture of a “guru” who built a closed community with loyal followers, wealthy sponsors, and families entrusting him with their children. Shock intensified with witness accounts alleging sexual abuse by the “guru” against a minor left in his care, dominating public debate.
Weaponizing the scandal
The shift in focus to pedophilia claims coincided with efforts to undermine PP-DB’s political legitimacy as the main driver of recent protest energy. Before the Petrohan case, the coalition was closing the gap with the ruling GERB-SDS by about 4%. The scandal risks widening that gap. A potential beneficiary is the future political project of President Rumen Radev, which gathers anti-establishment forces and consolidates discontent against “elites.”
Until just two months ago, PP-DB fuelled massive protests that forced the resignation of the Borissov-Peevski cabinet.
Borissov triggers government resignation as mass protests shake Bulgaria
The first figure led a center-right party that had won nearly every election since 2009 (except presidential ones); the second, sanctioned for corruption by the US and UK, had effectively taken over the DPS party.
The expected swearing-in of a caretaker government under Prime Minister Andrey Gyurov on 19 February will likely curb leaks from the Interior Ministry while altering institutional dynamics around the case. Plans to act against acting Prosecutor General Borislav Sarafov suggest a possible shift in tone between the executive and prosecution.
Gyurov, whose career developed within We Continue the Change (PP), is expected to take steps regarding Sarafov, whose legitimacy is contested. The incoming justice minister is anticipated to propose to the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) that a different acting prosecutor general be appointed – something outgoing Justice Minister Georgi Georgiev (GERB) did not dare to do.
“PP-DB are gays and pedophiles”
This time, the sharpest attacks on PP-DB come not from GERB-SDS or even DPS-New Beginning, but from pro-Russian Revival (Vazrazhdane) and the populist There Is Such a People (ITN). Both parties turned the case into a tribunal against a “criminal sect of gays and pedophiles.” From the parliamentary rostrum came labels like “sect of gays and pedophiles,” transforming the incident far beyond a criminal matter.
The reason: the victims’ NGO signed an agreement with the Environment Ministry in 2022 – under a PP-mandated government – to manage Natura 2000 territories. Then-Environment Minister Borislav Sandov, from the Greens (part of Democratic Bulgaria at the time), is cited as evidence of political responsibility.
The NGO’s sponsors come from the liberal community linked to PP-DB. Among them is Sofia Mayor Vasil Terziev (nominated by PP-DB), who reportedly donated 80,000 euros. These funds helped purchase drones, a luxury Toyota Tacoma camper with HYMER ML-T 580 superstructure, electric sleds, ATVs, and off-road vehicles.
PP-DB argues that institutions failed to prevent the tragedy and demands full declassification of documents at a National Security Council meeting. They claim DANS collaborators were among the lodge’s residents.
“NGO means sect”
Civil organizations are now in the crosshairs. Generalizations replace specifics: from this investigation, doubts are sown about NGOs themselves. “Civil society” is increasingly equated with “closed sect,” extending the attack well beyond Petrohan. “Sect” has become a common slur against democratic political formations.
National populists, following Russian and Hungarian models, have long sought to discredit the civic sector. In November last year, on a proposal from Peevski’s DPS-New Beginning – backed by Revival, BSP, ITN, MECH, and Velichie – a temporary parliamentary commission was created to probe organizations linked to philanthropist George Soros. It was later dissolved with votes from GERB-SDS and PP-DB.
Revival had also proposed a “foreign agents” bill stripping civil rights from individuals and organizations receiving over 1,000 leva from abroad annually.
“Only Orthodoxy; the rest Is dangerous”
Orthodox education resurfaced after reports that lodge residents practiced Buddhism.
“In our society, godlessness spreads, along with fascination for sects and false teachings that destroy the human soul and sometimes lead to tragedies like Petrohan,” stated Metropolitan Gabriel of Lovech on Bulgarian National Radio. The senior cleric condemned Buddhism as harmful and dangerous, stressing the importance of teaching Orthodoxy in schools.
Bulgarian Buddhist organizations distanced themselves from the “guru’s” practices. Despite attempts to frame it as a personal cult, Buddhism was placed outside acceptable bounds.
“Private education is harmful”
Private education deviating from norms was also targeted. One victim – the 15-year-old – attended the private Cosmos school near Sofia. The school received its primary education license in 2022, signed by a PP deputy minister. At the time, the Education Ministry was led by another PP figure, Nikolay Denkov, who later served as Prime Minister.
ITN leader and showman Slavi Trifonov joined the assault: “If Nikolai Denkov, as education minister, had not issued permission for the Cosmos private school in Osoitsa village, Gorni Malina municipality – a school strangely involved in ‘natural psychotherapy’ – those rangers would not have had access to children.” Trifonov also recalled that another PP figure, Boyko Rashkov, as interior minister, closed the police station in the town of Godetch, leaving the rangers’ activities unchecked.
Consequences
The Petrohan case alone will not decide the elections, but it reshapes the battlefield. Instead of debating institutional responsibility, a culture war rages – against “liberals,” NGOs, private education, and “non-traditional” religions. This forces PP-DB into a defensive posture, responding to unproven accusations.
The likely effect is erosion among peripheral voters sensitive to moral scandals. Their core base may hold firm, but mobilization could weaken. Conservative votes stand to gain.
If PP-DB fails to refocus the conversation on institutional accountability and the rule of law, the scandal will linger as a lasting stain – enough to diminish their chances of nearing second place in the upcoming vote.
Caption: The Petrohan mountain lodge before it was set on fire, Google Earth
Updated: February 16, 2026 - 11:38
