Charges Dropped against Defendants in Vratsa 'Murder Case'

The District prosecution in the town of Vratsa, Northwestern Bulgaria, has dropped the murder charges against the Damyanov brothers, whose actions led to the death of 18-year-old Todor Ivanov back in January.

The teenager was beaten in downtown Vratsa, in broad daylight, in mid-January. The initial indictment contained charges of causign death by negligence after inflicting bodily harm. Forensics then said Todor had died of heart problems, and the defense had argued the brothers and Todor had not known each other before the incident.

Public pressure, however, resulted in a decision of prosecutors to modify the charges to premeditated murder.

More than a month later, the prosecuting authority says it only has evidence of "hooliganism", with district prosecutors passing the case on to the regional prosecutor's office.

This comes after the post-mortem examination suggested Todor had not died of the wounds inflicted by the Damyanov brothers, but of cardiomiopathy, an innate heart problem.