23 People from Elderly Care Home near Govedartsi Moved to Other Homes

By 3 a.m. last night, the elderly residents of the care home near the village of Govedartsi — 23 people in total — were transported to other homes and to the hospital in Samokov. The home was operating without a license and without any medical personnel to care for the residents. Authorities responded after receiving a report about the conditions in the facility and after it became known that, until recently, the owner was the same person who had also owned the illegal home in the village of Yagoda.

Shortly after 10 p.m., elderly people carrying suitcases were seen boarding municipal vans that would take them to an unknown location. The home in Govedartsi, where most had lived for years, is to be shut down. Earlier in the day, a call was made to the emergency number 112 by a relative of one of the residents — they had been denied access to visit their family member, and the conditions inside were reported as inhumane. Following suspicions that the owners of the home were the same individuals behind the facility in Yagoda, a police operation was launched, involving social services, the local municipality, and the Medical Supervision Agency.

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"No evidence of persons being held forcibly, no evidence of bodily harm to the elderly people housed has been found," Vasil Popov, head of the Samokov district police station, said on June 8.

However, the home lacked basic care — as indicated by the strong odour and poor hygiene documented by investigators.

“I was inside. I saw that the conditions — to put it mildly — are unpleasant, unfavourable. There is a total lack of hygiene,” commented Veneta Galeva, Deputy Mayor of Samokov Municipality, on June 8,2025.

There were no medical personnel at the home. The elderly reported that they had not seen a doctor for over a year. Sixteen individuals were admitted to the hospital; the relatives of a 91-year-old man have already taken him home. The others were examined today — and bathed for the first time in a long while.

“What we found was that four individuals have mental health issues. Two — a couple — suffer from dementia. Three have had strokes. One man said he had surgery in March and his stitches had not yet been removed. One woman had a fistula after a femoral fracture,” explained Krasimira Kovachka, Executive Director of Samokov Municipal Hospital.

The legal status of the facility remains unclear.

“It is certainly not a hospice — I can guarantee that — as it is not listed in the registry of the Medical Supervision Agency,” said Ivanka Dineva, Executive Director of the agency, on June 8.

“Until recently, this home had a license. No such documents were found yesterday. Our colleagues will determine whether it was revoked or canceled,” explained Angel Djorgov, Mayor of Samokov Municipality.

According to the mayor of the village, the home has been operating as such since before 2019. He knows the so-called old owners - the three men from Stara Zagora who sold the business months ago - at least on paper. Exactly how things stand is still under investigation. Local people know them.

“Young, pleasant men, fresh — I can’t believe or accept that this has happened. I have no information that it’s like in Yagoda,” commented Lorita Hristova, Mayor of Govedartsi.

Who is to blame for what happened?

“How can you leave someone and not check how they’re living? For me, the relatives are to blame, not the owners.”

"They are to blame — the owners. Why take the money if you can’t provide the care?”

The relatives of some of the people refused to take care of them.