Three lacerations, 42 stitches and a sentence of less than a year in prison. This is the outcome of an attack in Sliven, which a man claims was carried out by Ivan Radev, known by the nickname Monkata. Radev has been detained and charged in connection with the fatal attack on a young man in the city last week.
The victim told NOVA that the incident took place on July 10, 2022, in central Sliven. According to him, he did not know Radev, who had been released from prison a few weeks earlier at the time.
“On July 10, 2022, he attacked me with a knife and inflicted three lacerations on me. I subsequently received 42 stitches, 33 of them in the neck area,” the man recounted.He claims that he was initially verbally attacked by Radev and a friend of his. A physical altercation followed, during which Radev’s friend pulled him by the arm. The victim then felt intense heat in his neck and ran away. Later, he realized that he had an open wound.
The case remained one of minor bodily harm
According to the man, the crime was classified as minor bodily harm, and Radev received a sentence of less than a year in prison. Together with his lawyer, the victim requested that the act be reclassified as attempted murder.
He said that the district prosecutor had refused. As the reasons given, the man cited the fact that the wounds were lacerations rather than stab wounds, as well as the fact that the attacker had not continued his actions.
“If more serious measures had been taken, last week’s murder would have been prevented,” he said.The man added that shortly before the attack on him, Radev had attacked two or three other people who had managed to escape. The claim was not confirmed with additional details in the published report.
Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev has also spoken about Ivan Radev and the crimes linked to him. Radev has been detained and charged in connection with the fatal attack in Sliven, while his guilt is yet to be established in the criminal proceedings.