Nine Bulgarian witnesses said that they saw  Michael Shields, from Britain, hit Bulgarian bartender Martin Georgiev with a rock on the head. Their testimony is a part of the motivation behind the 15-year prison sentence for Shields that Varna court has published online. The sentence is minimal for a premeditated murder attempt according to the law. 'One heavily built boy came with a big rock. He was holding it in both hands above his head. He threw it with all his strength at the fallen boy on the ground,' reads part of the witness account. Georgiev was immediately admitted to hospital with brain damage and skull fracture. His life was saved by emergency brain surgery.
All witnesses identified Shields as the perpetrator of the crime. Shields denies his involvement. He said he was playing cards in his hotel room while the crime was taking place. Hotel employees said all rooms occupied by the British football fans (with whom Shields was on holiday ) had been badly damaged. The mattresses and furniture in Shields' room had been cut with a knife.
A campaign for Shields' release is taking place in the UK. More than 5000 requests have been sent to Bulgarian President Georgi Purvanov in connection with a campaign run by British tabloid The Sun. (Novinar)