Bulgaria probes overnight fire at EMCO ammunition site as sabotage suspected

September 12, 2026 at 10:38 PM2 min

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Bulgaria is investigating an overnight fire at an EMCO ammunition storage facility near Gorni Varpishta, central Bulgaria, that triggered explosions but caused no injuries. Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev said authorities are not ruling out outside interference, while EMCO called the fire sabotage and ruled out human error.

Key Facts

The fire occurred at an EMCO ammunition storage facility near Gorni Varpishta, about 170 km east of Sofia.
Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev said authorities are not ruling out outside interference in the incident.
EMCO said the storage facility had not been used for months and was inspected 20 days ago with full compliance confirmed.
EMCO is run by Bulgarian arms dealer Emilian Gebrev, who prosecutors allege was targeted in a 2015 poisoning attempt by Russian agents.
Last week Germany said Russia was responsible for August's drone attack at Leipzig's airport, a claim Moscow denied as absurd.

The Fire and Investigation

The fire broke out overnight at EMCO's ammunition storage facility near Gorni Varpishta, triggering a series of explosions. No one was injured in the blaze. Interior Minister Ivan Demerdzhiev said the authorities are not ruling out outside interference. EMCO said the fire was sabotage and that human error was completely ruled out. The company did not say who might be responsible.

EMCO's Response and Context

EMCO said the storage facility had not been used for months and was inspected just 20 days ago, when full compliance with all regulations was confirmed. The company cited a number of similar incidents at Bulgarian defence firms since 2011, calling the latest no exception to the series of acts of sabotage against the Bulgarian defence industry. EMCO is run by Bulgarian arms dealer Emilian Gebrev, who Bulgarian prosecutors allege has already been targeted by Russian agents. This includes a poisoning attempt in 2015 on Gebrev, his son and another company employee; three Russian nationals were later charged in absentia for attempted murder. Bulgaria is a major weapons supplier to Ukraine, and although Sofia has recently halted state-owned arms supplies, Bulgarian private defence companies continue such transfers.

Regional Sabotage Concerns

Russia appears to have recently escalated its sabotage campaign across Europe. Last week, Germany said Russia was responsible for August's drone attack at Leipzig's airport, a claim denied by Moscow as absurd. There have also been a number of suspicious fires at defence facilities from Italy to Estonia, with some of the affected countries blaming Russia.