UP IN FLAMES

Bulgaria Accuses Six Russians of Blowing Up Four Arms Depots in Explosive Sabotage Plot

Bulgaria’s prosecutor-general linked the Russian citizens to four blasts—one that happened in 2011, two in 2015, and one in 2020.

Prosecutors in Bulgaria have reportedly accused six Russian citizens of carrying out a string of explosions at ammo and arms factories. According to The Moscow Times, a spokeswoman for the office of Bulgaria’s prosecutor-general linked the Russians to four blasts—one that happened in 2011, two in 2015, and one in 2020—and said that it has evidence to suggest the aim of the mission was to sabotage the export of arms to Georgia and Ukraine. The prosecutor’s office also said that the explosions could be linked to the attempted 2015 poisoning of Bulgarian arms dealer Emilian Gebrev, and that it’s working to establish a connection to a similar explosion in the Czech Republic in 2014. This month, the Czech Republic expelled 18 Russian embassy staff after its investigations linked Russian intelligence to the blast, which left two people dead. Bulgaria said three of its six suspects could belong to Russian intelligence.