Scotsman Found Guilty for Bulgarian Boy's Murder

A 71-year-old Scotsman was convicted Thursday and sentenced to 18 years of jail in the murder of an 11-old-boy in Northwestern Bulgaria.

The Regional Court in the Danube city of Vidin found David Bell Bryson guilty in the murder of Stansilav Mirchev, who was 11 at the time, from the village of Lagoshevtsi.

The Prosecutor asked for life without parole, while the defense council pleaded their client was not guilty because the murder charges were grounded only on Bryson's self-confession from the pre-trail investigation.

The Scotsman was also sentenced to pay BGN 200 000 in compensations to the parents of the murdered boy.

He reiterated after the trial that he was innocent and was going to appeal the verdict, while the father, Veselin Mirchev, declared he was not at all satisfied with the punishment, adding he wished Bulgaria still had the death penalty.

Bryson was found guilty for strangling to death the 11-year-old Stanislav Mirchev in the village of Lagoshevtsi close to Vidin.

Initially, the Scott claimed that he killed the boy because he was torturing his dog. It was expected that he would plead guilty in exchange for a lighter sentence to be served in Great Britain.

At the end of January 2012, the Vidin District Court ruled that the Scotsman has to be kept in the arrest for the duration of the investigation.

Bryson told the magistrates then that he was sorry about the crime he committed in a state of uncontrolled anger. Even though the defendant and his lawyer requested that the Scotsman be released on bail, the Court decided that he might flee.

In September, however, he unexpectedly pleaded innocent.

He insisted that he could have fled before he was arrested, and even inquired about flights to the UK, but never left.

The Scotsman was educated in Germany and worked as an aviation mechanic, according to the local authorities.