Rumen Tonev was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the murder of psychologist Ivan Vladimirov-Nav
Former police officer Rumen Tonev should be in prison for 18 years because of the murder of his neighbor – psychologist Ivan Vladimirov -Nav. The sentence is at first instance and is of the Sofia City Court. It is not final and can be appealed or challenged by the prosecutor’s office.
The prosecutor’s office considers the sentence fair, but Ivan Vladimirov’s relatives have announced that they will appeal with a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. Tonev was also ordered to pay BGN 35 thousand costs in the case.
The 54-year-old former policeman was accused of shooting his neighbor on February 8, 2023 with his personal weapon at the entrance of the block on Cherkovna Street, in which they both live. The motive for the crime is related to a long -standing inter -neighboring war.
On April 4, the court had announced that it would rule on a first instance sentence, but returned the case again in the judicial phase by appointing a new complex forensic, medical-balistic, physico-chemical and technical expertise. This was necessary because in his right to the last word, the defendant brought new facts that were not analyzed in the case. The additional complex expertise proved that the defendant was certainly out of his apartment on the staircase when he shot the victim – something he denies.
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The prosecution’s indictment claims that Ivan Vladimirov went to his neighbor’s home late in the evening. The reason was that the front door of his home was stained with a black substance, and this did not happen for the first time. The state prosecution claims that the conversation between the two men grew into a conflict in which Tonev shot his neighbor deadly and then moved the body.
The indictment also states that the victim’s body was discovered by neighbors on an inter -crowd. Before the court, Tonev claims that he acted in the situation of inevitable self -defense.
According to the victim’s relatives and the prosecutor’s office in the case, it was found that Ivan Vladimirov had intentionally killed and that Tonev had been preparing for this murder, hiding behind the door and waited for his neighbor with a weapon in his hand to shoot him.
