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Bulgarian prosecutors in Gabrovo opened a probe into suspected arson at an ammunition and gunpowder storage site operated by EMCO after a fire erupted shortly before midnight on September 11 and continued burning into the following day, according to multiple local and international reports. Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev told journalists that the blaze was under control with no injuries reported while investigators reviewed prior cases at the company and other defence firms for possible patterns or outside interference. The minister added that all hypotheses remained under consideration as experts conducted fire safety, chemical and video examinations of the scene near Tsareva Livada in the Gabrovo region.
EMCO said in a statement that the September 11 incident formed part of a series of acts of sabotage against the Bulgarian defence industry dating back to 2011 and ruled out human error because of the depot’s specialised purpose. The company noted that more than ten similar events at leading Bulgarian defence firms have occurred without any investigation reaching a conclusion, a situation it described as evidence of state incompetence or worse. EMCO called on parliament to examine the vulnerabilities and implement protective measures, according to the Bulgarian News Agency.
A BGNES review documented at least six major incidents involving EMCO facilities between a 2011 warehouse explosion near Lovni Dol and the latest event near Gorni Varpishta, with Bulgarian prosecutors having previously connected some of the blasts to Russian nationals and military intelligence interests. The company owned by arms trader Emilian Gebrev has faced fires and explosions at sites including Karnobat in 2022 and 2023 as well as Belitsa in August 2026, all without reported casualties. Prosecutors have alleged that earlier attacks aimed to disrupt munitions shipments destined for Ukraine and Georgia.
In 2024 Bulgarian authorities issued arrest warrants for six Russian citizens suspected of involvement in the destruction of EMCO depots between 2011 and 2020, Reuters reported, with investigators also linking the pattern to a 2015 poisoning attempt against Gebrev himself. The Bulgarian prosecution service has tied four specific explosions to remote-detonated charges while noting similarities to a 2014 depot blast in the Czech Republic that Czech officials attributed to the same Russian GRU unit. Moscow has consistently rejected the accusations.
Bulgaria has emerged as an important supplier of Soviet-era compatible ammunition to Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, a role that has drawn public attention to security at domestic production and storage sites, according to regional security assessments. The latest fire prompted President Iliana Yotova to state she is considering convening the Consultative Council on National Security given the increasing frequency of such events amid escalating conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East. Opposition lawmakers from Democratic Bulgaria renewed calls for a parliamentary hearing and ad-hoc committee to question security service heads.
The interior minister separately highlighted possible neglect in storage conditions and security protocols at the facilities while ordering inspections of all ammunition depots nationwide, The Sofia Globe reported. EMCO’s production manager confirmed the latest site primarily held ammunition including some medium-calibre rounds, with the area cordoned off and residents alerted through the BG-Alert system. Investigators continue to collect evidence as the probe examines both the immediate cause and any broader connections to previous unresolved cases across the Bulgarian arms sector.
