“We criticise absolutely every minister,” Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB) official leader Tsvetan Tsvetanov told the morning talk show of private channel bTV when asked why GERB criticised State Agency for National Security (SANS) chief Petko Sertov. According to Tsvetanov, Parliament should control Sertov’s work. “There is point in SANS’s existence in the way it was created to function, but attention should be paid to the people [working in it]," Tsvetanov said.

After kidnapped football boss Angel Bonchev was released, but his wife Kamelia was taken in his place, kidnapping became a main topic in Bulgarian-language media. That is why on the morning of July 15, Nova Television and Bulgarian National Television (BNT) interviewed people, who had been kidnapped.

Businessman Stefko Kolev, who was kidnapped in 2001, told Nova that “there are many kidnappings” in Bulgaria, a lot of ransoms had been paid and media are not aware of most of them. “That means that nothing is being done [by the authorities to resolve the problem]. You know, the punishments the law envisions are ridiculous,” he said.

Kidnapping practices had been developing, according to Kolev. “There is organisation, investments had been made, as I hear, with these [mobile phone] jamming,” he said.

Varna businessman Roubin Kotsev told BNT that when he was released, he called the police, only because it was the only place he could find a telephone in the place he was left. “I was forced to go to the police […] If I had the choice, I wouldn’t because I don’t thrust them,” he said.

Yuli Abadjiev, head of the Union of Bulgarian Commandos, told bTV that the kidnappers “released Angel [Bonchev] and took Kamelia so that Angel could provide the money for a ransom. But the attack is not against then, but against Litex president Grisha Ganchev”. Bonchev is chairperson of Litex football club, while Ganchev, a former business associate of Bonchev, is the owner of the club.