THERE is no decent person in Bulgaria, and no friend of the country, who would not rejoice when the last organised crime figure is taken out of circulation.

But “out of circulation” means no more than an appropriate jail sentence, and a confiscation of assets gained through crime, after a proper trial.

It does not mean the removal from society of organised crime figures through their own cycle of assassinations, and certainly not that police should get the message that suspects may die while in their custody, and that there will be no retribution for the officers involved.
Presumably there was a reason for the late Angel “Chorata” Dimitrov to have been detained as part of Operation Respect, the operation launched by the Government in response to calls from many quarters to Bulgaria to be seen to be doing something effective against organised crime.

But there can be no justification for Dimitrov to have died in custody. The military prosecution service has found that none of the five officers involved in Dimitrov’s detention should face criminal charges. The service has said that the fact of Dimitrov having attempted to escape custody justified the use of force, but considering that Dimitrov presumably was unarmed, and there were five officers attempting to restrain him, how could it come about that he received a fatal blow to the head with a heavy object?

Police services in progressive democracies are indeed briefed on circumstances under which they may use force, and even when they may use deadly force. The latter tends to apply only when there is an unequivocal threat to the life of a police officer.

It is essential for criminals to be treated with the greatest firmness, but this cannot happen in such a fashion that puts a question mark over whether a culture of human rights is being inculcated and upheld among Bulgaria’s police. When the country is, hopefully, heading for the home stretch towards membership of the European Union, it cannot afford such question marks to be raised. Even were it not headed for EU membership, deaths in custody through police beatings are unacceptable.

It is an open question whether Interior Minister Roumen Petkov should have taken responsibility for the actions of his officers by resigning. He has been in office for a relatively short time, and has inherited a wide range of challenges. We now know that proper treatment of suspects in custody is among them. It would be good to see Petkov taking action to ensure that all police are properly trained in this respect.

These points are not made out of sympathy for criminals, actual or alleged. The point is that it is clear that every aspect of the law enforcement system requires deep examination and rapid and thorough reform. Just as the rule of law, and not the rule of the bomb and the gun, must take care of organised crime figures, so the system of custody and of policing as a whole must have credibility. In seeking to achieve all of these things, Petkov has no time to lose.