site.btaProtest Blocks Traffic in NE Bulgaria over Alleged Botched Investigation of Motorcyclist's Death

People protesting against an allegedly botched investigation into the death of a young motorcyclist in April blocked for traffic the road between the northern towns of Popovo and Byala on Saturday evening. 

Earlier in the day, the protestors  closed the main road Sofia - Varna near the northestern town of Targovishte. The protestors headed in the direction of the approach to the Hemus Motorway after hours of blocking the ring road near Popovo, the hometown of a 24-year-old motorcyclist who died. 

"The protest is indefinite. We will stop at nothing. These are the first hours of the effective blockade. If you want, take it as civil disobedience," Simon Milkov, an organizer of the protest and a relative of the dead man's family, told a BTA reporter. "Today [Saturday] we blocked the cloverleaf interchange in the direction of Varna, leading to kilometres-long queues," Milkov said.

Later, around 18:00, the road was cleared for traffic. Dozens of cars with people remain on the Popovo - Byala road, where passage is not allowed. 

The approaches are regulated by police officers. According to Milkov, the protestors have clear demands. "They are the resignation of the head of the Popovo police station, senior investigating police officer Rositsa Ruseva, and her superior - the head of the Criminal Police. We want them gone as quickly as possible - not to be dismissed, not to be reassigned back to the Interior Ministry system, but to leave for good. These people smeared the scene of Momchil's accident. They could have established the truth even back then. The investigation into Momchil's death is neither objective, nor comprehensive, nor - independent," Milkov said.

"We are planning a series of blockades," he said, adding that until November 11, when the exhumation of the motorcyclist's body is scheduled, the location of the blockade will be different every day.