Zdravko Petrov

Zdravko Ivanov Petrov (; born 1972) is a Bulgarian serial killer who, together with accomplice Plamen Radkov , was responsible for at least five murders committed in Ruse from 1998 to 1999. Both men were convicted for their respective roles in the killings, and each was sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.

Murders Petrov and his 27-year-old accomplice Plamen Radkov committed their first known murder on August 15, 1998, when they shot and killed 26-year-old customs officer Kaloyan Mihovski at a parking lot in front of his home. A month later, on September 17, they attempted to rob and kill renowned numismatist Krasimir Dunitsov, but were unsure which apartment was his. The pair questioned a local passer-by who erroneously pointed them towards the wrong apartment - as a result, Petrov and Radkov broke inside and killed 36-year-old retired policeman Yordan Yordanov by shooting him with AK-47s, also wounding his wife in the process.

Arrest, trial, and verdict Two days after the Dimitrov-Nikolova murders, Petrov was advised by his lawyer to surrender to the authorities, which he did.

The trial began the following year, but in July 2000, it was briefly postponed following the murder–suicide of Kolev's parents in Marten.

A year after his conviction, Petrov was convicted on a separate rape conviction and given an additional 4 years imprisonment to be served at the Sofia Central Prison.

Escape during prison transfer On March 2, 2002, Petrov was scheduled to be transferred from the Sofia Central Prison to the Belene Prison. When the convoy reached Mezdra, Vratsa Province, they took off his handcuffs to hand him over to their colleagues from Gorna Oryahovitsa, but Petrov then fled into the nearby forest.

Appeals and lawsuits Since their incarceration, both Petrov and Radkov have repeatedly appealed their sentences and sued the government for various reasons. The pair has always maintained their innocence, claiming that the killings were done by a now-deceased hitman and a mysterious Russian. Although there were allegations that Mihovski and Yordanov's killings were linked to a suspected racket at the customs office in Danube Bridge, they have never been confirmed. One article published in 2011 claimed that he exhibited odd behaviors in prison, ranging from standing and pissing on his bed, refusing to leave his cell and talking to himself. The European Court of Human Rights ruled in his favour in the first two cases, ordering that he be paid 4,000 leva in restitution, but dismissed the final lawsuit. The group - including fellow serial killers Stanislav Metodiev and Yordan Petrov (no relation), and Australian murderer Jock Palfreeman - successfully sued the government before the European Court of Human Rights, with the caviat that surveillance could be allowed only in certain circumstances.

Prison life As of March , Petrov and Radkov remain behind bars. Since their original trial, Petrov has reportedly shown remorse for his crimes and has embraced Evangelical Christianity, according to an interview with Pastor Ivodor Kovachev. Krasimir Dunitsov, the pair's original target in the Yordanov murder, also gave an interview in 2013, during which he discussed his belief that Kamen Kolev and Petar Petrov were not innocent and served as getaway drivers. In said interview, Dunitsov claimed that he knew who had hired them to kill him, as well as stating that Zdravko allegedly wanted to confess to additional murders he and Radkov had committed, but was not permitted to do so by someone higher up.