A 12-year-old girl who was arrested and charged after police initially believed a Bulgarian man's claims that she had called him a migrant and threatened him has finally been vindicated after he was found guilty of assault. The terrified schoolgirl was filmed brandishing a knife and axe by Ilia Belov who shared the video online after he had called her 'sexy' and then attacked her.
A 12-year-old girl who was arrested and charged after police initially believed a Bulgarian man's claims that she had called him a migrant and threatened him has finally been vindicated after he was found guilty of assault.
The terrified schoolgirl was filmed brandishing a knife and axe by Ilia Belov who shared the video online after he had called her 'sexy' and then attacked her. Her mother has said that her daughter 'told the truth from the start' but no one believed her, including Police Scotland.
'It's been heartbreaking,' she said after Belov's convictions for assault and threatening behaviour at Dundee Sheriff Court yesterday. His sister Nadjedzha Belova, 20, had already admitted assaulting the victim's older sister, who was 13, by pulling her to the ground by the hair and striking her head. The case came after the murder of Henry Nowak in Southampton, who was arrested and handcuffed as he died after police believed the lies of Sikh killer Vickrum Digwa.
Digwa stabbed Mr Nowak six times with an eight-inch ceremonial sword and then falsely claimed the 18-year-old student had racially abused him. Ilia Belov, 22, had followed his 12-year-old victim and three other girls through Dundee last August, yelling at her: 'Come here sexy. I will show you how to have a good time.
' When she stood up for herself and called him 'creepy', Belov shoved her, causing her to hit her head on a metal handrail as she fell to the ground in the Lochee area of the city. He phoned his sister who then turned up and beat up a 13-year-old. Belov filmed the 12-year-old brandishing a knife and axe at him in footage that led to her arrest.
The viral video was shared on X by Elon Musk who said: 'What kind of government arrests little girls who try to defend themselves?
' But the schoolgirl was vilified when First Minister John Swinney condemned Musk's defence as 'deliberate misinformation' and the SNP leader accused the billionaire of trying to 'undermine' community cohesion. Police Scotland released a statement saying a 'Bulgarian couple' had been 'approached by youths' as the authorities appeared to pin the blame on her. Yesterday the girl, now 13, and her sister, now 14, were called 'impressive' and 'eloquent' witnesses as they were praised for telling the truth.
Belov claimed he had acted in self-defence and alleged the girl called him 'a migrant' when he walked past to buy cigarettes. In fact he called her 'sexy' and pushed her over. His evidence was dismissed as 'wholly unconvincing... revisionist and self-serving' by Sheriff Tim Niven-Smith after he was found guilty of assaulting the 12-year-old. He was also convicted of behaving in a 'threatening or abusive manner' towards four girls aged between 12 and 14.
Ilia Belov, 22, and his sister, Nadjedzha Belova, 20, outside Dundee Sheriff Court. He lied and falsely claimed that he had acted in self defence when his victim called him a migrant and pulled weapons on him. In fact he made lewd comments and assaulted her. Belov filmed his victim brandishing a knife and axe at him in footage that led to her arrest and went around the world.
Outside court yesterday, the girls' mother said all four children had been vindicated for telling the truth while Belov's lies had been exposed.
'They were telling the truth and they were slandered. There were too many lies at the start, so I'm glad it has all come out,' she said.
'It's been heartbreaking. They told the truth from the start but no one believed them.
'Everyone was more focused on the axe than anything else and didn't listen to what really happened. 'We are just a wee ordinary family. I'm just glad it's finally all sorted and we can begin to move on.
' Belov had attacked the girl and filmed her brandishing an axe and knife in footage that later led to her arrest. He had lied to police and said that he had acted in self-defence. He falsely claimed the incident began when the girls abused him as he walked past because he was foreign. In fact he had started it when he made sexual comments to the children.
He said he feared for his life when the 12-year-old pulled an axe and knife from her waistband. But Belov did not call police. Instead he phoned his sister, Nadjedzha, who ran to the scene and began attacking the victim's 13-year-old sister, dragging her to the ground by her hair and striking her on the head.
The 12-year-old insisted she pulled the weapons to protect herself and claimed she 'knew' the man would also 'try to go' for her sister and friends. The video, filmed by Belov in the Lochee area of Dundee in August 2025, was later shared on X by Elon Musk.
'I'm a 12-year-old. I'm 12. You're battering kids. You're f***ing kid bashers', she had said.
While another girl, believed to be her sister, yelled: 'Get away from us. She's f***ing 12 and you've just battered me'.
'That's it. That's it. Show the knife', Belov said back repeatedly. Mr Musk posted the footage and defended her
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