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Six Arrested After Rescue of Dozens From Illegal Bulgarian Care Homes

Survivors have been moved into state-run or family care with prosecutors vowing rigorous inspections of other unlicensed facilities

Image
A picture shows the bedroom of an illegal hospice in the village of Yagoda, Bulgaria, in this image released to Reuters on June 9, 2025. Bulgarian Ministry of Justice/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES
A picture shows the tied feet of an elderly person at an illegal hospice in the village of Yagoda, Bulgaria, in this image released to Reuters on June 9, 2025. Bulgarian Ministry of Justice/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES
A medic transports an elderly person on a stretcher outside an illegal hospice in the village of Yagoda, Bulgaria, in this image released to Reuters on June 9, 2025. Bulgarian Ministry of Justice/Handout via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. BEST QUALITY AVAILABLE.

Overview

  • Six people were detained in the village of Yagoda on charges including unlawful imprisonment, physical violence and causing bodily harm after police raided a private nursing home housing 75 residents.
  • Investigators discovered patients sedated, beaten and locked in rooms without bedding, window handles or contact with the outside world.
  • Authorities removed 75 individuals from two unlicensed care homes and transferred 11 to a state hospital while the others went to relatives or state-run centres.
  • A separate illegal nursing home in Govedartsi caring for 23 people was shut down on Monday as officials expand nationwide inspections.
  • Officials warn that chronic shortages in Bulgaria’s official elder-care infrastructure have fueled the rise of unregulated facilities exploiting vulnerable seniors.