Bulgarian Prosecutor's Starts Probe of 'Beret's Assassination Attempt'

Bulgaria's Prosecutor's Office has started a pre-court procedure against an unknown perpetrator for the assassination attempt against mafia boss Zlatomir Ivanov, aka Zlatko Baretata ("The Beret), committed in downtown Sofia Tuesday morning.

According to the Prosecutor's Office, there was a "murder attempt committed with means that threatened the lives of many".

Zlatomir Ivanov, a former counter-terrorism squad commando, got four gunshot wounds as he was entering the Central Courthouse in Sofia for his organized crime trial hearing but survived. One of his bodyguards was also wounded.

The assassination attempt occurred at about 9:30 am on Tuesday, with the shooter standing on the rood of the Sofia Bar Association building across the street where a fire broke out immediately after the shooting.

According to the probe started by the Prosecutor's Office, the fire on the roof of the building opposite the Courthouse was started deliberately with an explosion.

"The possibility of committing such a brutal act of violence in the downtown of the Bulgarian capital in an area where the major state institutions and public buildings are located in a way threatening the life and health of many citizens is a matter of serious worry and concern," reads the statement of the Sofia Prosecutor's Office.