‘Migrant hunter’ vigilantes are arrested, accused of attacking asylum seekers
Bulgaria has announced the arrest of three so-called migrant hunters after being accused of turning a blind eye to vigilantes targeting asylum seekers travelling to Europe from Turkey.
On Tuesday, the interior ministry said it had held Dinko Valev, a semi-professional wrestler who boasted earlier this year of detaining migrants. In separate arrests on the same day, the ministry said it had detained two vigilantes responsible for a video released this week that showed armed civilians tying up asylum seekers.
It follows an international outcry over the footage, which shows the individuals tying migrants’ hands behind their backs, forcing them to lie on their fronts and shouting: “No Bulgaria! Go back to Turkey!” The video amplified claims that the Bulgarian government has not been doing enough to clamp down on vigilante activity along its border.
These [migrants] are disgusting and bad people and they should stay where they are
In an interview, deputy interior minister Philip Gounev said the government is deeply opposed to citizens taking the law into their own hands. Announcing the three arrests as evidence of this stance, he said: “Arresting people is only in the power of law enforcement and the police. Any attempts by citizens to arrest other citizens is illegal. Any kind of illegal detention of citizens by other citizens is treated as such.”
More than 30,000 people were recorded attempting to pass through the country from Turkey last year, despite a fence along part of the border , and more may have passed through undetected. In response, groups of Bulgarian civilians have started to patrol the border, where they detain and rob those who are found.
Any help for the police, for the border police and for the state is welcome
Valev, 29, was described as a “superhero” in a state television report for his vigilante work. He later told the BBC : “These [migrants] are disgusting and bad people and they should stay where they are.”
That Valev was not arrested until Tuesday has been interpreted as a sign that the Bulgarian government was not initially serious about preventing vigilante arrests.