Bond: Berbatov and boss Sir Alex Ferguson
Manchester
United star Dimitar Berbatov
reportedly fled Bulgaria with his wife and daughter after Mafia
threats to kidnap the pair.
The striker evacuated his loved ones from Sofia on a private
charter plane provided by United manager Sir Alex Ferguson,
Bulgarian news reports claimed.
A spokesman for Manchester United could not confirm the story
when he spoke to the Daily
Mail on Monday night.
Bulgaria's Blitz news agency reported that local Mafia dons had
contacted Berbatov's mother, Margarita, 10 days ago to tell her
that the family was in danger if the £30.75million signing from
Tottenham Hotspur did not pay a £500,000 protection fee.
But Berbatov refused to go to police over the threat to his wife
Elena and daughter Dea after 'underworld sources' told him that
officials from Bulgaria's Internal Affairs Ministry were also in on
the plot.
Action man: Dimitar Berbatov scores a spectacular goal
against Blackburn
Instead, the star is believed to have negotiated a deal
directly with the clan bosses who agreed to leave his family alone,
local reports said.
Berbatov was kidnapped by a mob boss as a rising star in his
homeland. He was only saved when his father managed to negotiate a
settlement with a local mob boss.
'Dimi is still very worried for his family and has promised his
neighbours money if they notice any suspicious people around his
house,' said one family friend.
Unconfirmed UK reports on Monday night also claimed that
security had been increased around Berbatov's England home.
Record breaker: Berbatov scores for Bulgaria against
Malta
The 28-year-old was on international duty with Bulgaria
last month and became his country's top scorer of all time - with
48 from 74 caps - by hitting two goals in a 4-1 victory over
Malta.
A knee problem kept him out of action for United in November,
though he was on the bench for the 4-1 victory at Portsmouth at the
weekend.
