Taki, Karo, Ami… The brother of the head of Parliament: A freeze-frame of the captured state

Christoforos Amanatidis – Taki and his associates celebrated together the anniversary of Krasimir Kamenov – Karo. В компанията е Razmig Chakaryan – What about with the “Golden Laboratory” of Kapitan Andreevo, who is wanted together with Petyo the Euro. Това става ясно от снимка, с която екипът ни се сдоби от източници, свързани с разследването, което се води в Южна Африка за убийството на Каменов, съпругата му и други две други лица. Разполагаме и с прокурорска преписка, която разкрива, че Константин Върбанов, брат на шефа на парламента Росица Кирова, също е особено приближен на Таки.

Taki’s name became popular again in Bulgaria after a program on the British public television BBC highlighted his role in the OneCoin scheme and his closeness to the missing Ruzha Ignatova, as well as suspicions that it was he who ordered her murder. In the material of the British media, Taki is described as the most powerful drug lord in the country and untouchable for justice.

Справка в МВР: Ружа Игнатова била убита по поръчка на Таки. Шефът на отдел “Убийства” работел за него

Our team, which took part in the BBC investigation, has been working for a long time on this version, as well as on shining a light on the connections in Taki’s business empire, which includes the so-called “Secret Service”. “Golden Feeders“: “The Golden Laboratory” of Kapitan Andreevo, “The Golden Parking Lots”, “The Golden Puddle” and “The Golden Customs” at the border. Among these connections there are also those with political figures, mainly from GERB, but also from ITN.

Photos: Who’s Who? And Ku-Ku to play…

One of the photos with a high degree of probability documented the celebration in 2017 for the 50th anniversary of Krassimir Kamenov. In the frame is one of several tables where he has gathered his relatives, relatives and friends. It is assumed that the celebration took place in Thessaloniki. Closest to the lens are Razmig Chakaryan – Ami (from the left of the lens) and Christoforos Amanatidis – Taki (first from the right, next to Kamenov). On the other side of Kamenov’s side is his wife Gergana Kamenova, who was shot with him a year ago in their home in Cape Town.

Among the other familiar faces, Svetla Kamenova – ex-wife of Krasimir Kamenov, who is at the bottom in the middle, makes an impression.

The photo of the long table is not accidental. From the fiesta on the occasion of Karo’s anniversary, there are more photos in which Taki, Ami and Karo enjoy the music of Gamzata from Kuku-Band.

Another shot is also impressive, in which Svetla Kamenova and Christoforos Amanatidis-Taki are immortalized. It is from a later stage and testifies to the interventions of plastic surgeons in Amanatidis’ vision.

Shortly after being contacted by the BBC for comment on the forthcoming publication, which makes a connection between the disappearance of Ruzha and the murder of Karo, the Bulgarian authorities, and in particular the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office, announced that there was no Bulgarian trace in the shooting of Karo.

But the investigation in South Africa is moving according to a different version and it is that the persons responsible for the execution of Kamenov, his wife, the security guard and the nanny of their children are connected with Bulgaria. According to our sources, the prosecutor’s office in Cape Town has reduced the suspects as guarantors of Kamenov’s shooting to two people and they are documented in the large photo from the celebration.

Umbrella, racketeering and meetings with the CIA

Krassimir Kamenov – Karo was our source both for the fate of the crypto queen Ruzha Ignatova and for revelations in a case of political corruption and concealment of serious crimes. At that time, Taki’s former closest associate was already in conflict with him and with Razmig Chakaryan – Ami.

In the course of this conflict, it became obvious that the executive branch and the prosecutor’s office took the side of Amanatidis and Chakaryan and prosecuted Kamenov without available evidence.

The explanation for the role of the Prosecutor’s Office in this situation could be found in the already terminated investigation against Petyo Petrov – Pepi the Euro. From witness testimony In the case, it becomes clear that someone paid him half a million to be accused and declared a nationwide search for Karo. In the corridors of the courthouse in Sofia, there is a persistent rumor that this commitment was made personally to Christoforos Amanatidis.

Chakaryan’s warm relationship with Petyo Petrov – the Euro became known after the eminent former investigator narrowly escaped from the detention group that was looking for him in the restaurant “Kelari”, owned by Chakaryan. Then Chakaryan himself was also put on the wanted list as a witness.

However, it is not only the prosecutor’s office that works in favor of Kamenov’s competitors. Many prominent politicians from GERB, MRF and ITN apparently sabotaged the parliamentary committees dedicated to the monopoly position that a company associated with Chakaryan and Amanatidis had secured for themselves at the Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint, and not only there.

Kamenov told BIRD, during his lifetime, that he was the subject of political racketeering and after 2014 he was expected to buy the elections in the Haskovo region, for the then government. When he refused to deal with this in 2017, a person whom he pointed out as his proxy – Razmig Chakaryan – Ami became a favorite of GERB and MRF. Kamenov did not hide the fact that contacts with him were made by high-ranking police officers who were once in the security of the late Metodi Metodiev – Meto Ilienski. Our team has confirmation of at least two of those who guarded the legendary boss from VIS-2 while they were active employees of the Ministry of Interior. At the moment, there is evidence that both are actively recruiting in the Interior Ministry, although they gravitate around competing political circles.

After 2018, relations between Kamenov and Taki apparently deteriorated, because the latter apparently took Ami’s side. Kamenov claimed that Chakaryan had damaged him with tens of millions of euros from their joint business activities. In recordings of conversations between Kamenov and the top witness of the prosecution Ivaylo Serafimov, the topic of Amanatidis’ role in the conflict situation has been commented on many times.

An important revelation in the BBC film, which the Bulgarian media failed to comment on at all, is the statement that Karo has testified before the CIA. In particular, our team has information that he has testified both about the fate of Ruzha Ignatova and about persons – politicians and magistrates who are associated with Taki. He testified not only before the CIA, but also before the authorities in South Africa. This is probably the reason why the contents of safes with documents disappeared from his home after the execution, and not the jewelry and money found in another safe. This revelation was made by former Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev.

The testimony of the man executed in Cape Town in the investigation of Ruzha Ignatova is one of the leading hypotheses that are being worked on in connection with the shooting. But not in our country. The Bulgarian authorities have so far stubbornly neglected both the data on the murder of Ruja by Taki and another important motive for the murder of Karo, namely the redistribution of property for about half a billion euros. That’s how much they are rated assets managed by Kamenov before he was killed.

Documents: Rositsa Kirova’s brother sends Taki’s passport to a Seychelles oligarch

According to two sources, the photo with Taki, Ami and Karo also features Konstantin Lyubenov Varbanov – the brother and business partner of Rositsa Kirova. Since we have not received definite confirmation, we do not name a specific person from those present in the photo. But Varbanov’s ties to Taki are well documented. The two are being investigated in connection with a terrorism case

in the Seychelles. They traveled several times together and separately to the island nation, and their passports were found on the computer of the main defendant, Mukesh Vallabji , a local oligarch accused of corruption and preparing terrorist acts.

In his explanations to investigators, which BIRD has at its disposal, Varbanov claims that he sent copies of his passport and Taki’s passport to Mukesh Vallabji, whom he had known for 20 years, in order to book a hotel for them. Obviously, Taki’s level of trust in Varbanov is high enough to entrust him with his personal data.

This connection is particularly indicative. After the removal of Rossen Jeliazkov, Rositsa Kirova is currently acting as Speaker of the National Assembly – the second highest in the hierarchy of the Republic post, after the president and before the prime minister. Kirova’s political career began at ITN, but after she was discovered by Borisov and driven by the jeep, she became a central figure in GERB. Borissov nominated her for deputy speaker of parliament despite revelations that in the past she had a common business with the dangerous Kosovo drug lord Ismet Osmani.

It is noteworthy that the investigators did not make much effort to find Taki and take explanations from him as well. This is despite the fact that for two years Amanatidis has been developing commercial activities in the country and his lawyer is the well-known Viktor Rashev, who is also a lawyer for transactions and companies of the other persons involved in the case – Hristo Chepishev and the former sika Krasimir Bebov.

Such absent-mindedness of the authorities towards Taki is not accidental. Our investigation revealed that the initials of the drug lord appear in the verdict of two panels of judges in the case of “The Hammers”, indicating that he, H.N.A. or Christoforos Nikos Amanatidis created and organized a criminal group. The absurdity is that Taki himself is not accused, but only members of the criminal group he created are accused. According to BIRD sources, former Prosecutor General Sotir Tsatsarov is involved in clearing Taki of the charge. The fact that Taki is associated with the “Hammers” is also documented in the testimony of the head of the Homicide Department of the Directorate General “NP” Mihail Naumov in case 9005/2023 of the Sofia City Prosecutor’s Office: “I know the person Christoforos Nikos Amanitidis, better known as “Taki” as an employee of the Sofia Directorate of the Interior. Head of Group 02 Sector Robbery “OPKP”, we were responsible for the crimes committed on the territory of the Directorate of Internal Affairs and in particular on the territory of the 07th Regional Directorate of Internal Affairs. In the period 1999-2000, an armed robbery was committed in the Mladost district of a blind family. Working on the case, we came to a suspect, namely Christoforos and his criminal relationship Bobby, nicknamed “The Trouble”. Subsequently, I participated as an employee of DG NP in a team that was created in connection with work on an organized crime group at the Supreme Prosecutor’s Office. The team’s work was to document the criminal activities of the VIS group. Thanks to the activities of the OCG team, better known as the gang of the “hammers”, was realized and the leader of the criminal group “Taki” was declared wanted. … I would like to note that on serious criminal offenses committed against the person – murders, as well as infliction of serious bodily harm, I have acquired operational information from sources where the guarantor or perpetrator is “Taki” or people from his group…” /the original spelling of the explanations available to the editors has been preserved/ The search for Taki, including through Interpol, was terminated, as well as the criminal prosecution against him. In the court documents, only the statement remained that he was the organizer of a criminal group, but not part of it. Obviously, with his connections at the highest levels in the legislature, judiciary and executive, Taki can rest assured that prosecutors view all of this as fiction from a police novel and not as evidence of real crimes. Updated 9 June 2024: In the initial version of the article, it was claimed that in the photo on the left behind Ami, opposite Kamenov, stands Georgi Vassilev – shareholder

and a leading figure in “GP Group”, a favorite company of the GERB government. He is a relative of Amanatidis – the two are married to sisters Anna and Boryana Shehtov. Vassilev contacted the editorial office and denied that he was present at the event.

***

Разследващата журналистика е разузнаването на гражданите. BIRD се финансира от дарения. Ние не публикуваме реклами. Не получаваме държавни субсидии. Не разчитаме на грантове. Финансирането чрез малки дарения от читатели е гаранция за нашата независимост. Включете се, за да продължим да разкриваме злоупотреби и да държим отговорни властимащите. Използваме Вашите пари за хонорари на журналистите, командировки, изграждане и поддръжка на нашите информационни системи, такси за фирмени и имотни регистри у нас и по света, придобиване на техника и специално оборудване, осигуряване на нашата безопасност и други важни работни мисии. Важно: Ако дарявате всеки месец това ще ни даде възможност да планираме и организираме нашата работа. Благодарим Ви! Нас ни има, защото Вас Ви има!

This post is also available in: Български (Bulgarian)