According to the indictment of the District Prosecutor’s Office in Targovishte, the court found a 47-year-old man guilty of causing the death of another driver in a traffic accident. T.U. was sentenced to “imprisonment” for a term of five years, the Appellate Prosecutor’s Office in Varna announced.
He will also be disqualified from driving a motor vehicle for eight years. The man is known to the law enforcement authorities for his repeated violations of the Road Traffic Act.
On the day of the fatal accident, October 31, 2022, T.U. traveled from Omurtag to Targovishte on the main road Sofia – Varna. Around 6:45 p.m., shortly after passing the Momina Cheshma area, driving at a higher speed than the permitted speed, his car caught up with another vehicle joining the traffic and decided that he had to overtake it. On the road section where the two cars were located, as there was a slight left turn in the direction of their movement, overtaking was prohibited. However, T.U. took the prohibited maneuver and accelerated his speed even more, although another car was coming towards him. Before he could complete the illegal overtaking, the then 45-year-old defendant’s car collided with the oncoming car as well as the car being overtaken. The impact between the cars was extremely strong and its sound was heard at a great distance, the prosecutor’s office recalled.
As a result of the traffic accident, the driver of the second motor vehicle was seriously injured and died a few hours later in the hospital. According to the forensic medical examination prepared in the case, the cause of his death was severe combined cranio-cerebral, chest and abdominal injuries, received as a result of the accident.
The prepared complex auto technical examination showed that the speed of the car of the driver recognized as guilty was 154 km/h.
The verdict is subject to protest and appeal before the Court of Appeal – Varna.
The death of the 21-year-old sparked public outrage years ago. A mothers’ vigil was organized demanding adequate punishment for the culprit. Relatives and friends of the victim, active citizens of Targovishte, requested with a petition additional security of the road section. In May of this year with a quiet vigil in front of the building of the Courthouse in the regional city, sympathizers with the pain of the family appealed for a fair sentence.