4-Year-Old Killed by 19-Year-Old Driver in Bulgarian Village Grivitsa

A 4-year-old child was struck and killed on the spot by a jeep driven by a teenager in the center of the village of Grivitsa, in Bulgaria’s Pleven region, at about 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, bTV Novinite reported.

The driver, whom nova.bg identified as 18 and 24chasa.bg and Dir.bg as 19, hit the child while the boy was crossing the roadway in the village center, the outlets reported. The impact was fatal, and the child died at the scene.

Driver Detained After Negative Alcohol and Drug Tests

According to the Ministry of Interior, tests for alcohol and drugs on the driver were negative, nova.bg, 24chasa.bg and Dir.bg reported. The young driver was detained for 24 hours, nova.bg reported, while 24chasa.bg and Dir.bg said he was detained without specifying the period.

Mariana Tsvetkova, spokesperson for the Pleven Regional Directorate of the Ministry of Interior, told Dir.bg that the tension that erupted in the village after the crash had been brought under control.

Protest at Driver’s Home, Gendarmerie Deployed in Grivitsa

The tragedy immediately sparked tension in the village. Relatives and family members of the dead child gathered on the central square, nova.bg, 24chasa.bg and Dir.bg reported. The crowd then moved to protest in front of the detained driver’s home.

To keep the situation from escalating, reinforced police presence was deployed in Grivitsa, supported by Gendarmerie units, all four outlets reported. Uniformed officers monitored the maintenance of public order and the prevention of possible clashes, Dir.bg reported.

Speed and Crossing Conditions Still to Be Clarified

The circumstances of the crash remain under investigation. Dir.bg reported that the speed at which the vehicle was traveling and the conditions under which the child was crossing the road are still to be established.

Recent Child Pedestrian Casualties Across Bulgaria

On November 3, a 10-year-old child was hit at a pedestrian crossing in Gorna Oryahovitsa and hospitalized with a broken leg; a day later a 14-year-old boy was injured in a similar incident in Burgas. In the Pleven region, a 6-year-old boy was hit by a car in Pordim in August and an 8-year-old was injured at a pedestrian crossing in Cherven Bryag in July. Also in July, a 26-year-old man was killed in a head-on collision with a public transport bus on a left turn on the road between Grivitsa and Zgalevo.

Questions Still Open in the Grivitsa Case

What is not yet known is how fast the jeep was moving through the village center at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, whether the child was on a marked crossing, and what charges the detained driver will face once the investigation establishes the full circumstances of the crash.

Earlier coverage: 4-Year-Old Child Killed by Teen Driver in Grivitsa, Bulgaria