Elena Bineva, daughter of murdered businessman and former politician Slavi Binev, said goodbye to her father in a post on Instagram. "He was a fighter, but this time he was not even given the chance to fight," she wrote. The post includes a black-and-white photo of her, her father and her sister, and is signed "Your little bear Ia."

Binev was killed by a shot to the head at his home on Saturday, 24 October, at about 10:00am. The next day, interior minister Ivan Demerdzhiev told a briefing that the man charged is not a hired killer but someone close to the victim. The main theory is that an argument over unsettled financial dealings came before the shot.

How it all started: Demerdzhiev: man charged with killing Slavi Binev was close to the victim, not a hired killer

Bineva is a European champion and a former gymnast with the national ensemble. She said her father left too soon. He always trusted his friends, most of all those who had long been close to the family, and did not expect anything like this.

She admitted he was not perfect, but said he was their father and wanted his children to do their best. He was proud of his family, and to him every achievement, big or small, was great. "He was hard and strong, but deep down he was like a big teddy bear, full of so much love," his daughter wrote.

The family lost him when it was more divided than ever. Bineva believes his dream of a big, close family will now come true. She promised they would not let him down and would help each other and grow stronger, as he wanted.

She said it is impossible to accept that he is gone, but they will have to learn to live with it. She believes they will again sit together at the table for the holidays her father loved most. Bineva recently had a baby girl and is moving to Barcelona with her husband and the baby.

The main defendant in the case is Turkish citizen Eyup Temiz. The court kept him in custody and banned the media from photographing him. Temiz is married to Niya Temiz, a longtime business partner of Binev and daughter of Sofia's former chief architect Stoyan Yanev.

At the hearing on pre-trial detention, the court heard that Niya Temiz left Bulgaria right after the shooting. There is no information that she has been charged.

Investigators believe the accused acted alone, said Nikolay Nikolaev, spokesman for the Sofia City Prosecutor's Office.