One of the most sinister and large-scale criminal cases in the modern history of Bulgaria, which ended with six corpses, continues to bring to light startling revelations. The complex forensic-psychological, psychiatric and sexological post-mortem examination of the case of Ivaylo Kalushev lifts the curtain on a well-oiled machine for financial flows, political lobbying and brutal violence disguised as spirituality.
The materials from the investigation reveal how, under the guise of “noble eco-causes“ a criminal structure has acquired an unprecedented status of untouchability in the area of the “Petrohan“ hut.
The alleged “rangers“ and the occupation of the mountain
Investigative authorities found that the so-called “Bulgarian Ranger Organization“ of Kalushev acted as an armed paramilitary structure, formed immediately after the change in power in 2022. Dressed in pompous uniforms with stripes and invented ranks, the people of the group illegally occupied mountain territories — exclusive state property.
Local residents and tourists have massively reported being stopped by armed patrols that have crossed traditional routes (including the international Kom-Emine road) and have restricted citizens' access. The “rangers“ have claimed to be performing official security against poachers and illegal logging. However, the inspectors are categorical: in The registers do not contain a single real signal or captured poachers from this organization. Their activity was simply a cover for glorifying the group and attracting new victims.
The Cynical Doctrine: “Sex heals past life traumas“
The most shocking part of the investigation concerns the methods of indoctrination and sexual exploitation of minors. The father of the 13-year-old victim T. P. gave shocking testimony to the investigating authorities. He revealed that the cult leader Ivaylo Kalushev used brutal psychological manipulation to break the girl's resistance and justify the violence.
Kalushev methodically convinced the 13-year-old child that intimate contact with his close associate Nikolay Zlatkov was not at all crime or fornication, but a “spiritual ritual“. According to him, this act was intended to heal “severe mental trauma accumulated from a past life“. Through such perverted theses, the cult kept its underage victims in submission, suggesting to them that they were going through a process of “purification“.
Psychological pressure: The plan to break away from the family
The father's testimony also reveals the role of Kalushev's closest associates in the scheme to isolate the children. The investigation revealed the name of Ralitsa Asenova, who acted as a psychological mediator and organizer in the cult.
Asenova had purposeful conversations with the 13-year-old girl's father, actively convinced him that for the “good and spiritual development“ of the child, she must be immediately separated from her mother. The plan envisaged that the girl would be permanently left under the full care and control of Kalushev at the cult base. The aim of this coordinated pressure was to completely sever the victim's ties with the outside world and her family environment in order to ensure complete impunity for the perpetrators. Any attempt at resistance was countered by Kalushev's people with warnings that they “are not a random organization“ and have influential patrons.
Legitimatement from the highest echelons of power
The expert report, prepared by leading psychologists, psychiatrists and theologians, explicitly emphasizes that the scale of the criminal activity would not have been possible without the official legitimization of the group by high-ranking political figures. In 2022, Kalushev received a hastily signed memorandum of cooperation from the then leadership of the Ministry of Environment and Water (MESW). This document literally served as an official state umbrella over the sect.
Visits of ministers, mayors and deputies to the “Petrohan“ hut further respected the local population. The visitors paradoxically showed complete indifference to the fact that the base combines illegal checkpoints, checkpoints and fake state emblems with shamanic Tibetan props and Buddhist symbolism in an area supposedly intended for the education of children. The paramilitary umbrella fell only in 2025, when the next Minister of Environment (Manol Genov) terminated the memorandum and forced the group to liberate the seized forest territories.
Financial Donors: The Money for „Causes“ Spent in Dubai
The bank analyses of the investigation reveal huge financial flows from wealthy sponsors, which ensure the group's luxurious life. Among the most striking revelations is a large private donation of over 177,000 leva, provided in two installments in 2023 by a senior Sofia politician and his wife. The money was transferred to the account of a for-profit company (“Bulgarian Association of Extreme Sports“ Ltd.), and the donors did not even request the legally required notarial contracts.
Instead of the declared “noble causes”, the accounting analysis shows that the amount was not recorded on the balance sheet at all, but was spent on Kalushev's luxury trip to Dubai (accompanied by a minor) and on the purchase of recreational vehicles. Decrypted chats show that Kalushev demanded from the same politician another 300,000 leva — this time from public municipal budgets — under the pretext of taking over the “security“ of the “Vitosha“ natural park.
The “Petrohan“ case remains a bloody and ominous warning about how public gullibility, combined with political conformism and institutional negligence, can breed a criminal structure, a front for child abuse that ultimately led to the deaths of six people.
Sources: Voices, Epicenter