Sat, Feb 11 2012

Arrested 'alleged' kidnappers set free, TV channel says

Fri, Apr 24 2009 15:04 CET

byPetar Kostadinov

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Arrested 'alleged' kidnappers set free, TV channel says

Photo: Georgi Kozhouharov

Five men arrested on April 22 2009 after they were spotted by a highway police patrol travelling in their vehicle with masks over their heads were released after the 24-hour legal limit on such detentions expired, Bulgaria's private broadcaster RE:TV said on April 24 2009.

According to RE:TV, the five - who resisted arrest and in whose vehicle police found masks and several weapons - said that they put the masks on because they wanted to have fun and tease the police.

After they were arrested, media speculation said that they were involved in the kidnapping of businessman Kiro Kirov (70) who was held hostage for 17 days and was released on April 14 2009 after his son paid a ransom of hundreds of thousands of euro.

The Interior Ministry media centre neither confirmed nor rejected the news. "Our job is to arrest alleged perpetrators. From then on, it is the prosecutors' job to press charges and if there are no charges, the five must be released after 24 hours".

As for the reported statement of the detainees that they had been "just having fun", the media centre said "you don't expect people arrested for any crime to admit they have done it".

Prosecutors have not commented on the release of the five.

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