A memorial procession was to be held on December 28 2008 in Sofia to honour the memory of Andrei Monov, who died in a stabbing incident a year ago.

Court action is proceeding against Australian citizen Jock Palfreeman, the alleged assailant. In addition to criminal proceedings, Monov's family is claiming 250 000 leva in compensation from Palfreeman.

Organisers of the procession said that it would start at 2pm from the First English Language High School and was intended solely as a tribute to Monov's memory, not as a political event.

Evidence given at a court hearing in May was that Palfreeman said that he had intervened in a conflict between two groups, one of them Roma. He had acted in self-defence after those involved in the fracas turned on him, Palfreeman said.

Two men were stabbed in the incident, Anton Zahariev and Monov. Monov died on the way to hospital. At the May  court  hearing, Zahariev identified Palfreeman as his attacker but said that he had no recollection of any Roma people being present at the scene.

On February 24, Bulgarian news agency BTA quoted unnamed sources in the Prosecutor-General's Office, who said that Palfreeman was fully aware of his actions. Court experts said that the Australian could not claim temporary insanity as his defence.

If found guilty, Palfreeman could be sentenced to between 10 and 20 years in jail or life imprisonment with or without the possibility of commuted sentence.

Palfreeman, a trainee soldier in the British army, had asked British defence officials to be present at his hearings to ensure a fair and transparent trial, fearing that police and witnesses were not being objective. But since he was not in Bulgaria for official defence purposes the matter was "being treated as a consulate matter", the UK defence ministry said at the time.

Andrei Monov, 20, was the son of renowned psychologist and Sofia University professor Hristo Monov. His funeral was attended by 250 people, including school friends, members of the Levski football club fan club and Government officials.