I have heard about Iliyan Filipov, because in the last elections my constituency was Plovdiv. He owns the largest transport company and has a very serious presence in the construction business. For Plovdiv, this is a very influential person. He was connected with GERB and DPS and Peevski before that, and now - with the ruling party, which is typical of Bulgarian business. This was said in an interview for the show “Face to Face” on bTV Tatyana Doncheva - politician and criminal law lawyer.
“I can't say anything about the versions. I see that the Plovdiv Ministry of Internal Affairs is working at high speeds as for this type of crime. I got the impression that the people who gave the press conference in the morning were very worried. The district prosecutor frankly stuttered when she spoke. They were very picky in their theses. I can't say anything more than the people who conduct the inspections and watch the camera footage," she added.
The show's host Tsvetanka Rizova quoted the letter from Iliyan Filipov from March 24, 2025, in which the deceased calls Plovdiv a "feudal city" and says that something could happen to him. "He even points to one of the other big businessmen as his enemy in Plovdiv," the journalist added.
In response to this, Doncheva said: "I told you what I think. There must be more than just a conflict. There must be an insoluble one, and they could resolve it with their presence in one or another government. Obviously, Peevski is currently unable to successfully deal with such things. He needs to cover himself. It is not enough to even kick someone out of the “Botev” stadium, whatever the version is. In “Affair” I saw reminders from 2025. For some people who disappeared and the Lebeshkovsky brothers were investigated as the murdered man and his partner in another company were in the police for hours and my colleague Demerdzhiev took over their defense. After that, the Lebeshkovsky brothers were released in practice with very symbolic measures of deterrence, which sounded a bit strange. So far, the boys who disappeared have not been found. The Lebeshkovsky brothers were once in the group of “The Insolent” and were convicted in the case against “The Insolent”. Having a transport company with large turnovers, covering large distances to all points of the continent and neighboring continents carries risks. I can't say who and what he was driving.
“As a lawyer and as a person who was a former prosecutor, I adhere to the basics of professional ethics. A lawyer is obliged to take on the defense just as a doctor is obliged to take on the treatment of a patient. If someone has remarks against Ivan Demerdzhiev as the lawyer of the murdered person and his partner Bosneshki, let them bring these things out and then demand his resignation. However, if he wants it simply because as a lawyer he took on the defense of a detained person, these are things outside the rules”, the politician also commented. She emphasized that it is extremely wrong to put an equal sign between a lawyer and his client.
“I believe that the Tsatsarov era is over, even though he is quite seriously influential on the current government”, continued Tatyana Doncheva.
According to her, the former Prosecutor General exercises this influence through the Minister of Justice. “The two are close. He is a cadre of Tsatsarov. It is good to know this publicly. Tsatsarov has named the Minister of Justice. And through the Masonic lodge “Sun Orient” he has enough influence on the current government. This influence will also be on the Supreme Judicial Council”, Doncheva commented.
When asked about the election of a new prosecutor general and the intentions of “Progressive Bulgaria” to act on this case, she explained: “The PB does not need to have any intention. They work there as a military unit. The intention, desire and understanding of those who are led have no meaning for life. They matter only as a number: they will vote whatever they are told. The leadership is Rumen Radev, Koprinkov, Gen. Stoimenov and one or two others. "Those who lead the parliamentary group are ribbons," Doncheva commented.
She also assessed the election campaign for the presidential elections. According to her, the only person on the list of candidates who can represent Bulgaria "elegantly, meaningfully and intelligently" is Iliyana Yotova.