An investor in the construction business shot himself in front of a bank office in Sofia, Bulgarian-language media reported on February 12 2009. The man has been identified as Boris Yordanov, 42, and according to some reports, he was a former employee of the National Customs Agency (NCA).

Yordanov was found in a Mercedes parked outside a bank office, holding a gun and a gunshot wound visible under his chin. Some witnesses, cited by Monitor daily, have said that two other men had got out of the car and entered the bank before the incident took place. Later, the men were found by police standing near the car and were detained for questioning.

Sega daily said that Yordanov had a construction business involving the building of apartment blocks in several boroughs in Sofia. The newspaper suggested that the investor had a number of bank loans he had recently found hard to repay.

An inquiry by Sega daily in the trade register revealed that a person of the same name and age owned 33 per cent of a company titled Bonista. It declared business activities in the sphere of building construction and equipment. Bonista had real estate offers published on a Russian website, regarding apartments in the Black Sea town of Primorsko, Sega daily said.

Yordanov has acted as a co-owner in three other firms involved in real estate management, consultancy and trade. The businessman has been part of the board of directors of Bulgari foundation, founded by prominent Bulgarian intellectuals.

According to Monitor daily, citing the Interior Ministry, Yordanov had a clean criminal record. Some allegations have tried to connect him with the scandalous NCA employee Georgi "Purata" Georgiev, who was accused of organising a criminal circle in the customs office at Sofia Airport. His name became notorious two years ago after authorities found out that he led a lavish lifestyle while only declaring his salary from customs.