The District Court confirmed the permanent measure of "detention in custody" against Ivaylo Kolev, indicated by the investigation as a leading figure in the Plovdiv branch of "Blood and Honor". The court accepted that there is evidence of organized activity in the case, as well as of Kolev's leading role in it. The magistrates determined lighter measures of non-detention for Ivelin and Teodor Velevi - cash guarantees. For Teodor Velev, the bail is 800 euros, and for his father Ivelin Velev - 1000 euros, Nova TV reported.
The court indicated that the investigated crime is punishable by up to 4 years of imprisonment, but when assessing the measure against Kolev, it took into account not only the envisaged punishment, but also the nature and scale of the investigated activity. In its reasoning, the court emphasized the use of speech to spread ideas directed against people of different nationality, skin color, belonging to different minorities or different appearance and clothing.
According to the court, from the evidence collected so far, a reasonable assumption can be made of the deliberate instillation of hatred and intolerance. The magistrates also drew attention to the targeting of such messages at young people, whose lack of life experience and stable value base may make them more susceptible to influence. The court accepted that there was evidence of a high level of public danger in relation to Kolev and that his continued detention was also necessary in order to prevent any influence on the course of the investigation.
With regard to Teodor Velev, the court considered that a lighter measure could be determined and set a cash bail of 800 euros. A bail of 1,000 euros was confirmed for Ivelin Velev.
In the courtroom, Kolev denied having any connection with the murder on Mladezhki Hill and requested a lighter measure so that he could continue to develop his business until the final conclusion of the proceedings. “There is a lack of data and information about my connection and that of some of the people in the club that I hired with the brutal murder on Mladezhki Hill. I am asking for a lighter measure of detention so that I can continue to develop my business until a final decision is made“, Kolev said.
The prosecution responded that, according to the indictment, this business is related to the sale of materials with neo-Nazi symbolism. The state prosecution emphasized that the dispute is not only about specific symbols or materials, but about the essence of the ideas preached and the way in which they were explained and disseminated. According to the prosecution, it is about instilling hatred and making calls for violence, which is why the prosecution uses the general term “ideology“ when describing the investigated activity.
The defense disputed the prosecution's thesis and stated that there is no specific evidence in the case that the three defendants are hiding or obstructing the investigation. According to the lawyers, there is also a lack of sufficient evidence to justify the most severe measure of "detention in custody" for all three.
Ultimately, the court left Kolev in custody, while Ivelin and Teodor Velevi remained on bail. The decision is not subject to appeal.
We recall that the three defendants in the investigation against the Plovdiv branch of "Blood and Honor" once again appeared in court. The alleged leader of the organization, Ivaylo Kolev, appealed his detention, while the prosecutor's office insisted that all three defendants be detained.
In the first instance, Kolev, who is alleged to be the leader of the group, was left in custody, while Ivelin Velev was released on bail of 1,000 euros, and 18-year-old Teodor - without a detention order.
“They are not here because they gathered on a specific evening to drink beer and watch a match. They are here because they distributed materials with neo-Nazi ideology, preached hatred and attracted new members“. With these words, prosecutor Galina Andreeva from the Plovdiv District Prosecutor's Office defended the request of the three defendants in the investigation against the Plovdiv branch of “Blood and Honor“ to remain behind bars.
The district court moved the case forward and accepted the evidence presented by the prosecution. The alleged leader Ivaylo Kolev and the father and son Ivelin and Teodor Velevi stood before the court again. Kolev is now appealing his detention, while the prosecution is protesting the decision for the other two and insisting that all three be detained.
In her pleading, Prosecutor Andreeva stated that, according to the evidence collected so far, each of the accused is involved in spreading an ideology that instills hatred. According to her, the club did not function as a place for ordinary political, historical or philosophical conversations. “At the moment, it is obvious that the club was not created by Kolev for ordinary political, historical or philosophical debates, but to openly instill enmity, to attract people and to make calls for violence, primarily against foreigners and people from various minorities“, the prosecutor stated.
A special emphasis in the pleading was placed on attracting young people. According to the prosecution, some of the participants were looking for younger and more susceptible people, who initially went through a kind of trial period before being accepted more actively into the group's activities. "They used the attraction of younger and younger people who, for one reason or another, were susceptible to external influences," Andreeva pointed out. She also spoke of a "dangerous continuity" between father and son. According to her, Teodor Velev, despite his young age, was actively involved in attracting other young people to listen to speeches and participate in the organization's activities. "There is a dangerous continuity in which ideology is passed down from father to son," the prosecutor said.
According to the state prosecution, persuading third parties, many of whom were minors, constitutes incitement to hatred. The prosecution also claims that the role of the father and son was key precisely in expanding the circle around Kolev. “In order for this preaching to happen, there must be an audience and this is the role of the father and son - advertising figures, people who attract new participants“, pointed out Prosecutor Andreeva.
In her pleading, she also stated that Kolev was the main person who presented the ideas to a wider circle of people, but this did not diminish the importance of the others. “Without them, he would have no one to instill hatred in and sell advertising materials for his ideology, if it were not for their action to secure new recruits and convince them that they are part of something important“, said Andreeva.
The prosecutor's office also referred to data related to the attack on Nepalese citizens in Plovdiv. Teodor Velev is already a defendant in separate proceedings for violence against foreigners. According to the prosecutor, this violence was committed in the context of the ideology that the accused shared with relatives and other people from the circle around the organization. “The accused Teodor Velev is already a defendant in proceedings against assault and violence against Nepalese citizens. The violence was committed in fulfillment of an ideology that he shares with his father, brother and another 40-50 people recruited to participate in the Plovdiv branch“, said Andreeva.
The murder on Mladezhki Hill was also touched upon in the courtroom. According to the prosecutor in the case, there is evidence that after the crime, some of the people from the group were worried that the proximity of what happened to the place where they were gathering might once again draw the police's attention to them. “The members were worried that the crime was committed near their hangout and that they could come into the police's sights again“, Andreeva said.
She also stated that on the night of the arrest, a meeting with a lawyer was organized to give advice on how to behave in the event of possible contact with law enforcement. The prosecutor's office also emphasized the risk of committing a new crime. According to the prosecution, this risk is real, and some of the people associated with the group are afraid to give testimony.
The three are accused of preaching and inciting discrimination, hatred and violence. Kolev is implicated as the perpetrator, and Ivelin and Teodor Velevi - as his helpers. The court must decide whether to keep Kolev in custody and whether to honor the prosecutor's protest for more severe measures against the father and son.
In conclusion, Prosecutor Andreeva emphasized that, according to the state prosecution, a feeling of impunity has been created among the accused, and among some of their followers they are perceived as heroes. According to her, such behavior brings them popularity on social networks, likes and publicity, and at the same time can encourage other individuals to commit illegal acts.
It is precisely because of this, as well as because of the assessment of a real danger of committing a new crime, that the prosecutor's office insisted that the court determine the most severe measure of detention for all three accused - "detention in custody".