A former police officer has been detained in connection with a brutal murder in the "Tochilartsi" neighborhood in Saedinenie. The victim is 21-year-old Mitko Dimitrov, and the suspect is Todor Lapkov - a retired police officer who in recent years was engaged in livestock breeding,"Plovdiv 24" reported.
According to unofficial information, Lapkov is a former captain of the Ministry of Interior and for many years worked in a leading position in the investigation in Plovdiv. After leaving the system, he retired from his previous profession and took up sheep breeding.
Lapkov was well known in the Saedinenie area. He raised a flock of about 120 sheep and was among the last active livestock breeders in the settlement. His relatives and acquaintances describe him as an extremely hardworking man who took care of his farm for years by himself.
According to stories from people in the area, 21-year-old Mitko Dimitrov was known for numerous thefts. It is alleged that the objects of his attacks were various properties and farms in the area, including that of Todor Lapkov.
According to initial and still unconfirmed official information, it was an attempt at another theft that may have preceded the fatal collision.
Lapkov and Dimitrov knew each other well. Last Tuesday evening, around midnight, the young man boasted to his acquaintances that he had not stolen from the former policeman's farm for some time. According to the stories, a little later he went to Lapkov's stable in Tochilartsi.
What exactly happened next is yet to be determined by the investigators. It is assumed that a conflict arose between the two, which ended with the death of the 21-year-old man.
According to initial data, the victim's body was dismembered, and the remains were placed in four sacks and thrown into a shaft. The body was found by the police yesterday.
Todor Lapkov has been detained. Procedural and investigative actions continue at the scene.
Until three years ago, Todor Lapkov was presented as the former police officer who replaced the Ministry of Internal Affairs system with a peaceful life in nature. Today he was detained for the brutal murder of 21-year-old Mitko Dimitrov, whose dismembered body was found in a shaft near a sheep farm in the Tochilartsi neighborhood in Saedinenie, writes "Traffic News".
In May 2023, Lapkov stood in front of the bTV camera to tell why he left the police and became a shepherd. At that time, he raised 130 sheep and described life outside the city as a kind of escape from the tension, conflicts and addictions in the system.
“The feeling is one that is not there in Plovdiv. Yesterday I was in Plovdiv, I got a headache - crazy. I am used to peace here“, Lapkov said at the time.
According to him, on the farm he decided what to do himself, made his own plans and carried them out himself. It was precisely the feeling of independence that was one of the reasons he preferred life among animals to that of an employee in the Ministry of Interior system.
„Especially the last two or three years, when I was already at the end of my career, it was very difficult. People have become more particular, everyone places high demands on themselves and others and always thinks they are right. The whole society has upset the balance. It is difficult to be a police officer anymore“, shares the former Ministry of Interior employee.