JUDGE ALLOWS HOUSE ARREST FOR BULGARIAN

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00552R000505110048-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 27, 2010
• Sequence Number: 48
• Publication Date: June 19, 1984
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/08/27: CIA-RDP90-00552R000505110048-9
ARTICLE APPEARED
ON PAGE A- '
Judge; All 6 W"'-s-,
House Arrest?
For Bulgarian
By Michael Dobbs
PARIS, June 18-An Italian- ih
vestigating magistrate today ordered
thata Bulgarian held as a, suspect''.
the shooting of Pope John Paul II be
taken from prison' and held'. under' .
house arrest following a defense re-
quest that he be allowed to receive;
special medical treatment:-:'?
It is the second time in six nionma
-'that Sergei I. Antonov,-deputy m i
ager of the, Bulgarian state airlines'
Balkan Air, has been placed under,
house arrest rather' than being held
in prison.
Antonov is one of three Bulgar-
ians and five Turks whose indict-?
ment has been requested by.: -the
state prosecutor investigating-, 'fond
spiracy.to murder the pope.
In a telephone :interview from
Ron2e, Antonov's lawyer, Giuseppe'
Consolo, said that his client's release
from prison was a "positive sign."
He said' that the investigating:
magistrate, Judge Ilario' Martella,:
had granted the defense request deg
spite objections by the state prone
tutor.
Martella is awaiting .a defense
submission that he will weigh
against the prosecutor's report, de
tails of which were reported by The.
Washington Post today, before, de:
biding whether to send Antonovto
trial.
Defense lawyers have requested a
postponement in the June 20 dead-
line for making their submission to
Martella on the grounds that they
have so far had only partial access to
the 25,000 pages of evidence drawn
up in the case:
ter 13 months in prison. He was re=
turned to prison in March after the
prosecution appealed to a" 1hipRF,W
WASHINGTON POST
19 June 1984
In today's order, Martella stipu-
lated that Antonov stay in a differ-
ent apartment from the one he used,:
last time because police complained
that one was too difficult to guard...
The 36-year-old Bulgarian.. was I
first granted house arrest last De-
cember because of failing. health "'g-'
Consolo said that Antonov, whose
mental and physical condition liar
"deteriorated in prison,: has,circus?
tort' and heart problems..
Mehmet Ali Agca, the man : wfio
shot the pope in St Peter's Square in
Rome on May 13, 1981, has accused
Antonov of being part of a conspir-
acy by the' Bulgarian, security ser-
vices.
Agca's credibility as a witness has
been challenged by defense lawyers
on the grounds that he has with-
drawn substantial' chunks of testi-
mony about Antonov and can be
shown to have lied or been mistaken
about some key points since he.
stacked talking about.. a "Bulgarian
connection" to Judge Martella in
May 1982.
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/08/27: CIA-RDP90-00552R000505110048-9