Bulgarian security officer led away in handcuffs after journalist was shoved
Military prosecutors opened pre-trial proceedings against the NSO officer, who was detained after midnight. The reporter says she suffered a broken shoulder.
Symbolic image · Photo: Todor Bozhinov / Тодор Божинов / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
The officer of Bulgaria's National Service for Protection (NSO) who allegedly shoved a journalist to the ground outside the headquarters of the Progressive Bulgaria party has been detained. He was led out of the military prosecutor's office in Sofia in handcuffs shortly after midnight, BNT reported. The NSO said he had come in voluntarily for questioning. Pre-trial proceedings were opened under the supervision of the Military District Prosecutor's Office; no specific charge has been announced.
The reporter had tried to put a question to parliament Speaker Mihaela Dotsova as she got into her car, opening the already closed door. She said doctors at the Military Medical Academy found a fractured shoulder and discharged her for home treatment. Dotsova visited her at the prosecutor's office in the evening and expressed her "deep regret," but the journalist said the speaker was mainly justifying herself.
The NSO launched an inquiry and promised "the strictest measures" if wrongdoing is found. President Iliana Iotova condemned the officer's reaction as unacceptable. GERB-SDS and DPS called for Dotsova's resignation, and the Association of European Journalists demanded accountability – two days before Sunday's presidential election.