Iva Mihailova says DANS told her to appear first on Martin Karbovski to get rehabilitation
Recorded conversations released by a Bulgarian YouTuber contain claims that DANS told Mihailova her rehabilitation and legal aid depended on first appearing with Martin Karbovski.
In a secretly recorded conversation published by Bulgarian YouTuber Stanislav Tsanov, Iva Mihailova says agents of the State Agency for National Security (DANS) told her that her access to state-funded specialised rehabilitation depended on a specific media appearance.
"My rehabilitation depends on them," Mihailova tells Tsanov in the recording. She says DANS insisted that her first interview must be given to journalist Martin Karbovski, even though she had already arranged to record with Tsanov.
Recording and the alleged condition
Tsanov says Mihailova confirmed she would come to the recording a day earlier but called hours later asking to meet immediately and then to cancel the interview. Tsanov began recording when they met in person. According to Mihailova, the agency told her they could decide which questions Karbovski would ask; if she recorded with someone else first, the footage would be deleted and she would lose both the rehabilitation and state-funded legal assistance.
On the tape Mihailova also describes recent days as "heavy psychological pressure" and tells Tsanov: "I can't say anything over the phone." When asked how she reached Bulgaria after both her passports were confiscated in North Macedonia, she replied: "No one from Bulgaria. Completely alone." She added that earlier requests to the Bulgarian state and to the embassy in Skopje, and specifically to Ambassador Zhelyasko Radukov, had been refused.
Mihailova left for Bulgaria in October despite having both Macedonian and Bulgarian passports taken as a precaution. She is accused at the Basic Court in Kochani of causing a traffic accident on the Shtip–Kochani expressway that killed 33-year-old Besim Durmishi from Ljuboten. The court decided to try her in absentia and on 9 November denied her request to participate by video link from Bulgaria.
After the recording was released, Democratic Bulgaria co‑chair Ivaylo Mirchev announced he would seek an investigation into DANS's actions and whether ruling‑party politicians were involved. Coalition colleague Bozhidar Bozhanov demanded the resignation of the agency director, Plamen Tonchev. The recording also highlights the perceived closeness between Karbovski and political figures: Iliana Yotova appeared on his show hours before a decisive round of presidential elections, and Rumen Radev gave his only online appearance before parliamentary elections on Karbovski's programme.
Photo: press material from the event
