German authorities have detained two German citizens charged with setting fire to Starlink equipment at a base near the village of Plana, Interior Minister Demerdzhiev said. Bulgaria is waiting for them to be handed over.

Nine days ago it emerged that the two had left Bulgaria. The Sofia City Court was then considering a request from prosecutors for European arrest warrants. One has been in place since 19 October.

What happened before: Suspects in Starlink antenna arson near Plana have left Bulgaria

The two arrived in Bulgaria just before the fire and left right after it. By late that evening they were already in Germany.

"We expect the two accused in the arson at the base near the village of Plana to be handed over to the Bulgarian authorities so that work on the case can continue," Demerdzhiev said.

The Interior Ministry says the pair and their car were identified right after the fire. It says information about them was passed on in stages to every country on the route to Germany.

German agencies had known who they were since 10 October, but without a European arrest warrant, their procedures did not allow them to detain the two. Once the warrant was issued, the documents were translated and sent. German police then found and detained the pair at the first opportunity. Demerdzhiev said the warrant went through the procedures as fast as possible.

Prime Minister Rumen Radev praised the Interior Ministry and the security services for identifying those responsible within hours, even though they had left the country. He said partner services had been warned to watch for them. Issuing a European arrest warrant is a very long process, the prime minister said, but this time it was sped up without breaking the rules.

What exactly the two did in Bulgaria and how long they stayed will be established in the criminal case, Demerdzhiev said.

Bulgarian authorities looked into the pair's past and passed the findings to their German counterparts. The record shows earlier incidents: robberies and road accidents.