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Sat, May 26 2012
Dr Palfreeman’s story
Dr Simon Palfreeman
Photo: Provided
Hristo Monov’s position
When The Sofia Echo contacted Hristo Monov, the father of Andrei Monov, he said he would not comment on the case until Palfreeman’s sentence is confirmed by all court instances. "I think this is the civilised thing to do because I don’t want to be accused of influencing the court in any way," he said.
He did say, however, that he believed the court had conducted itself properly and "in any other country Palfreeman would have already been handed the harshest sentence". In Bulgaria’s case, this was life without parole. As for Dr Palfreeman’s account of the actions and deportment of his son Jock, Monov said: "It is a moral issue related to Jock Palfreeman’s upbringing".
Details
In addition to the 20-year sentence, Jock Palfreeman was sentenced to pay 400 000 leva to the family of the victim Andrei Monov and 50 000 leva to Monov’s friend Antoan Zahariev, who was injured during the incident. According to prosecutors, Palfreeman was in no way provoked to attack and kill Monov and injure Zahariev.
Prosecutors claimed that it was Palfreeman who made Monov and his friend defend themselves from Palfreeman in any possible way. That’s why they were throwing stones at Palfreeman and were screaming in order to get police attention. According to the testimonies of the two police officers who arrived at the scene of the incident, they found a group of young men having a row. One of the police officers identified the knife with which Monov was killed, which lay on the ground.
When The Sofia Echo contacted Hristo Monov, the father of Andrei Monov, he said he would not comment on the case until Palfreeman’s sentence is confirmed by all court instances. "I think this is the civilised thing to do because I don’t want to be accused of influencing the court in any way," he said.
He did say, however, that he believed the court had conducted itself properly and "in any other country Palfreeman would have already been handed the harshest sentence". In Bulgaria’s case, this was life without parole. As for Dr Palfreeman’s account of the actions and deportment of his son Jock, Monov said: "It is a moral issue related to Jock Palfreeman’s upbringing".
Details
In addition to the 20-year sentence, Jock Palfreeman was sentenced to pay 400 000 leva to the family of the victim Andrei Monov and 50 000 leva to Monov’s friend Antoan Zahariev, who was injured during the incident. According to prosecutors, Palfreeman was in no way provoked to attack and kill Monov and injure Zahariev.
Prosecutors claimed that it was Palfreeman who made Monov and his friend defend themselves from Palfreeman in any possible way. That’s why they were throwing stones at Palfreeman and were screaming in order to get police attention. According to the testimonies of the two police officers who arrived at the scene of the incident, they found a group of young men having a row. One of the police officers identified the knife with which Monov was killed, which lay on the ground.
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Two years of the Palfreeman case
It is now two years since the incident that left one young man dead and an Australian man sentenced to 20 years' imprisonment.
Sofia Metro reports record 201 000 commuters in a day
Sofia Metro will operate round-the-clock on December 31 - January 1
Palfreeman to lodge appeal
Jock Palfreeman's father, Dr Simon Palfreeman, was in Sofia to support his son during the closing stages of the trial
Palfreeman is given 20-year jail sentence
Judge's sentence comes after a lengthy trial punctuated by delays and intense media interest in Australia, including a documentary broadcast earlier this year.
Palfreeman case will resume on December 2 with lawyers' arguments
The court turned down the defence's request for a new medical report
Palfreeman case postponed again
Australian Paul "Jock" Palfreeman has been in prison in Sofia for two years, triggering extensive publicity in Australia about jail conditions and the treatment of Roma in Bulgaria
Palfreeman case back in court
Australian press have taken a keen interest in the case with the focus on the Bulgarian justice system and alleged discrimination against Roma.
Australian documentary alleges intimidation of courts in Jock Palfreeman case
Australian programme One Night in Sofia, to the accompaniment of a haunting soundtrack, presents a grim portrait of Bulgaria as a backward state with a pliable judiciary
Consular officials visited Australian in custody in Bulgaria over stabbing
Consular officials from the Australian embassy in Athens flew to Sofia on Monday December 31 2007 to see Paul "Jock" Palfreeman, who was held in custody on the accusation of a stabbing murder. Palfreeman has been charged with murder and attempted murder after a brawl in the Bulgarian capital Sofia on December 28, Australian daily Heraldsun said. Palfreeman had been arrested after allegedly fatally stabbing 20-year-old Andrei Manov, the son of prominent local psychotherapist Hristo Manov, during a brawl, the newspaper said.
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Saab awarded $2.4M military training equipment contract in Bulgaria
The funding is provided under the foreign military sales programme of the US army's Program Executive Office of Simulation, Training and Instrumentation.
Two Brits fined for hooliganism in Bulgaria’s Veliko Turnovo
The UK nationals were arrested after throwing beer bottles at people after being refused entry to a restaurant that had closed for the night.
Tourism: Bulgaria to spend 300M leva on restoring castles, ancient sites
Restoration and development projects include Madara Horseman, Arbanassi fortress, Magura cave.
Sovereign Order of Malta assists hospital in Bulgaria’s Iskrets
Simeon Saxe-Coburg and his spouse Margarita opened a new heating and insulation system at the Tsar Ferdinand Hospital for Pulmonary Diseases in Iskrets, a project implemented thanks to the Embassy of the Sovereign Order of Malta in Sofia and the Nando Peretti Foundation.
Bulgarian Parliament passes confiscation act
According to the law's provisions, the commission will have the power to investigate individuals without prior notification and would not require a criminal conviction in order to launch an investigation.
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From my point of view, never having studied the judicial sytem here, I cannot believe that a man can be declared guity by one individual who does not have a single doubt regarding his or her verdict.
It seems like "The Grand Inquisition" never ended.
TThe European Union is against the "death" sentence.
Imagine an innocent, conscientious individual locked up for life with individuals who are totally unconscious of what they do- it's a sentence of "Hell on Earth"
I would certainly recommend that [...]
Read the full comment everyone stays of the streets and fights for "justice" in other ways.
Dr. Vaclev Havel's address to the members of the European Union was a plea for greater spirituality and Schiller's Ode to Joy(not Joy Juice) be the guide for personkind.
We seem to be leaps and bounds away from his message to us all.
At last some real facts emerge and we start to find out what really happened that night. For two years the media has been reporting unsubstantiated stories which in turn have fuelled hysterical responses. If Jock hadn't been able to defend himself, he would most likely be dead, bashed to death by highly intoxicated football hooligans. Please everyone, read over these facts again and start to question what you hear in the media, from your friends and colleagues and from the Internet! Don't gossip, search for the truth, be critical and make it known that you won't tolerate lies and [...]
Read the full comment corruption. Because you never know, one day it could be you or your brother or friend who finds themselves before a court which in this case could only be described as what is known in Australia as a 'kangaroo court', that is, judicial proceedings that deny due process rights in the name of expediency.
"Anonimen, "
I don't carry a knife with me but I also don't go out late at night to clubs and 'shady' places. I don't agree with you at all that Sofia is one of the most safest cities in EU. I don't think it is really dangerous if you are smart and stay away from certain areas, but it certainly has it's dangers. As a foreigner, I would hate facing a Bulgarian Court. The court is one of the most corrupt in Europe, and lease objective. However, I agree with you about the knives - [...]
Read the full comment if you feel the need to carry a knife here in Sofia, you are going to the wrong places and hanging out with the wrong people. You are looking for trouble.
"Jock took it "for self-defence", obviously with the perception that walking around Sofia late at night could be dangerous".
There are no obvious indicators to fuel perceptions that mean you have to carry a knife in Sofia. Especially when on the previous page Mr Palfreeman states that his son was brought up in an environment where it appears knives are tabboo. Sofia is one of the safest cities to work and walk in Europe from my and many others experiences. Wrong place, wrong time and critically wrong action!