The murder of businessman and owner of the football club "Botev" (Plovdiv) Iliyan Filipov shook Plovdiv that night.
The report about it was filed shortly after 01:00 that night, with the prosecution stating that it was investigating a premeditated murder, but during its morning briefing the prosecution did not provide further details because the investigation is at a very early stage.
Filipov was killed with a gunshot to the head in front of his home in the Plovdiv neighborhood "Hristo Smirnenski".
His death caused reactions among criminologists, representatives of the transport sector and business in Plovdiv. Experts see signs of preparation and professional handwriting in the manner of the crime, and people who knew Filipov claim that immediately before his death he showed no signs of worry or fear.
Iliyan Filipov is one of the two co-founders and owners of PIMK. The beginning of the company, established in 2000 together with Penko Nestorov, was related to freight transport, but over time the company began to deal with construction and railway transport.
In recent years, the name of Iliyan Filipov has also become widely known outside the transport sector and because of his participation in Plovdiv football. PIMK participated in the reconstruction of the "Hristo Botev" stadium in Plovdiv, and Filipov gradually became one of the key figures around the "Botev" football club. In June 2025, he took over ownership of the club and announced that he would also assume liabilities accumulated by the previous management for nearly 6.9 million leva.
In addition, Filipov is also associated with political figures, having demonstrated closeness to GERB leader Boyko Borisov, then supported by Prime Minister Rumen Radev, and the Minister of Interior Ivan Demerdzhiev was Filipov's lawyer.
In 2025, the Ministry of Interior carried out inspections at PINK, as well as other transport companies, in connection with an international drug trafficking channel, the disappearance of 160 kg of cocaine, for which the brothers Radoslav and Mitko Lebeshkovski were arrested, and the kidnapping of two men in Sofia.
In this case, Filipov then specified that the police were seeking assistance for trucks that had been submitted as requests, as well as for a former employee of theirs who worked in the subsidiary company "Next Logistics" and who left a year and four months ago.
Again in 2025, Filipov came into conflict with another businessman from Plovdiv - Ivan Petleshkov owner of the security company "Trafik SOT", who is said to be close to Christoforos Amanatidis - Taki and Delyan Peevski, wanted in the past for drug trafficking, and who - in turn - was linked to the missing crypto queen Ruzha Ignatova.
Then Filipov accused Petleshkov of taking control of the Plovdiv Municipal Council and blackmailing other businessmen through defamation campaigns. In addition, according to Filipov, Petleshkov controls the police and "all smuggling channels" in Plovdiv are happening with his approval.
The conflict between the two also came after the BOETS investigation, which revealed that a chief in the Plovdiv unit of the GDBOP had ordered his subordinates to retreat immediately before arresting suspects in the raid on a depot with smuggled cigarettes. The case became known as "Colleagues, go home".
The murder of Iliyan Filipov brings back memories of the series of showy murders of influential figures that have marked the last two decades, some of which remain unsolved.
Here are some of them:
Iliya Pavlov, 2003.
Iliya Pavlov was killed on March 7, 2003. He was shot by a sniper in front of the office of "Multigroup" in Sofia, and his murder remains unsolved to this day.
He is one of the most influential businessmen of the transition and the founder of "Multigroup". His name has been associated with numerous companies, banks, insurance businesses and large economic interests. In the public sphere, "Multigroup" has long been defined as one of the powerful business structures of the transition.
Emil Kyulev, 2005
Emil Kyulev is a banker and businessman. In the 1990s, he participated in the establishment of several banks, and later developed a significant financial and insurance business.
He was killed in 2005, shot in his car on the capital's "Bulgaria" Boulevard. His murder is currently unsolved.
Georgi Iliev, 2005
Georgi Iliev is one of the most famous figures in the power business in the 90s and early 2000s. Together with his brother - Vasil Iliev, who was killed before him, they founded the company VIS-2, which was later inherited by VAI Holding. Georgi Iliev was also the owner of "Lokomotiv" (Plovdiv).
He was killed in 2005 in Sunny Beach, after being shot in his restaurant "Buddha Bar". His murder remains unsolved.
Ivan Todorov - The Doctor, 2006
Ivan Todorov - The Doctor is a businessman whose name has been publicly linked to smuggling channels for years. Investigations have been conducted against him, and in 2004 he survived an assassination attempt.
In February 2006, he was shot in Sofia, and his murder also remains unsolved.
Alexander Tasev - Ostap, 2007
Tasev is also a businessman, having been involved in fruit, fuel and gas trade, manufacturing, construction, and real estate and commodity trading. He was the president of "Lokomotiv" (Plovdiv). In the public sphere, his name is associated with VAI Holding.
He was shot dead in his car on May 14, 2007 in the capital's "Boyana" district. His murder has not been solved yet.
Georgi Stoev, 2008
Stoev is a Bulgarian writer, known for his books about the Bulgarian underground, in which he talks about his contacts and relationships with representatives of the criminal world.
He was shot dead in 2008 in Sofia, dying later. The murder remains unsolved.
Bobby Tsankov, 2010
Bobby Tsankov is a journalist known for his programs and publications about the criminal world. He himself publicly talks about his contacts with famous figures from the underworld.
He died on January 5, 2010, after being shot at the entrance to a housing cooperative on the capital's "Alexander Stamboliyski" Boulevard. Two other men were also injured in the shooting.
His murder also remains unsolved, although after the shooting in 2010, there were detainees and charges. At that time, the prosecutor's office charged Krasimir Marinov - Golemia Margin - with incitement to murder, and his brother Nikolay Marinov - Malkia Margin was charged as an accomplice. Stefan Bonev - Sako was also detained in the ensuing investigation, but the charges against him were related to an organized crime group, not to the murder of Tsankov.
But the Sofia Court of Appeal later decided that there was not enough evidence that Krasimir Marinov had ordered the murder, and he was released.
Borislav Mandzhukov, 2014
Mandzhukov is a Varna businessman, owner of hotels and restaurants.
He was shot dead in 2014 in front of his home in Sofia. In 2015, the prosecutor's office stated that it had identified the alleged perpetrators of the murder - Galin Mirchev - Zhorko and Nikolay Toshev - Chirpanski, but later the charges against them were dropped due to insufficient evidence and the case did not reach a final verdict.
Alexander Antov, 2016
Antov is the owner of the fashion house "Agression" and is an entrepreneur in the textile and fashion business.
He was found dead in 2016 near Bistritsa after going out to walk his dog. The investigation is for murder, but no perpetrator has been identified.
Lyubomir Ivanov, 2022
Lyubomir Ivanov is a former employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. He was the head of the "Criminal Police" department in the Sofia district administration, but left the system.
He was shot dead in front of his home in 2022 in the "Lozenets" district of Sofia.
Kristian Iliev and Boyan Tabakov were brought in as the accused for his murder. In 2023, the prosecution accused Krasimir Kamenov-Karo as the alleged instigator. However, the case has not yet been launched for various reasons.
Karo never managed to appear in court, because he was also killed.
Krassimir Kamenov - Karo, 2023
Karo is a figure associated with organized crime. His name appears in a number of criminal investigations. He was wanted by Interpol until his death.
He was killed in May 2023 in his home in Cape Town, South Africa, along with his wife. At the moment, his murder has not been solved either.
Alexey Petrov, 2023
Alexey Petrov is a businessman and politician. In 2010, he was arrested and charged with being the leader of the criminal group "Octopus", which was engaged in racketeering and extortion. However, this case was dismissed in 2014 by the specialized court.
Before he was shot on August 16, 2023 in the area of the capital's "Dragalevtsi" district, there were two unsuccessful assassination attempts against Petrov. There are currently no detainees or suspects in the murder of Alexei Petrov.
Around his death, allegations emerged that he had assisted in the joint government in 2023/2024 between GERB and PP-DB. Initially, both GERB and PP-DB denied this, but Borisov subsequently admitted that Petrov had assisted logistically in meetings between representatives of GERB and "We Continue the Change", and data also appeared in the public domain about a meeting between Borisov, Kiril Petkov and Assen Vassilev with the mediation of Alexei Petrov.
Martin Bojanov - The Notary, 2024
The name of Martin Bozanov - the Notary became known after his murder at the end of January 2024, which revealed his influence in the judicial system.
At the moment - although there were even parliamentary committees for his murder - there are no detainees or suspects in his death.
Vladimir Yankov, 2026
Vladimir Yankov is a businessman who was involved in the import and distribution of coffee, tea and vending equipment.
His body was found in his home in Bankya after a fire that occurred on July 27, 2026. The prosecutor's office said it was investigating premeditated murder, but there are no further details at the moment.
Source: news.bg