European arrest warrants approved for two Germans over Starlink antenna arson in Bulgaria
Sofia City Court has approved European arrest warrants for two 19-year-old German nationals charged in absentia over the 9 October arson attack on Starlink antennas near the village of Plana.
A Bulgarian court has approved European arrest warrants for two 19-year-old German nationals charged over an arson attack on Starlink ground antennas near Sofia, Bulgarian National Radio reported on Monday (https://bnrnews.bg/en/post/544360/two-german-nationals-charged-over-arson-attack-on-starlink-antennas-near-sofia).
The Sofia City Court ruled that Zeka Islam and Tirpan Beytulla can be sought internationally after they were charged in absentia on 14 October with setting fire to antennas at the Plana teleport facility near the village of Plana, south of the capital, on the night of 9 October, BTA reported (https://www.bulgaria-italia.com/bg/news/rss/news.asp?ns=btaen).
Prosecutors told the court the men entered Bulgaria through the Kalotina checkpoint at 5:37pm on 9 October, saying they were visiting for tourism, and left for Serbia in a German-registered car at 11:55pm. The fire was set at around 10:25pm: three antennas were destroyed completely, two partially burned and three others otherwise affected. Gloves and masks were used.
The case rests on photographs, vehicle tracking records, witness statements and an expert assessment. The men hold German documents showing they were born in 2007; their whereabouts are unknown. If convicted, they face three to 12 years in prison.
Their court-appointed lawyers argued only the vehicle, not the men, had been identified — but the court found reasonable grounds for suspicion and rejected the objections. The ruling can be appealed within three days.
The attack first surfaced via MP Ivaylo Mirchev’s 12 October disclosure; Prime Minister Rumen Radev said an intensive probe with partner agencies was under way. Related: two Turkish nationals were detained in Germany on 12 October over a Starlink station arson in Wola Krobowska, Poland — a move announced by Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (https://militarnyi.com/en/news/starlink-gateway-station-serving-ukraine-targeted-in-arson-attempt-in-lithuania/).
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