Yanko G. Kolev, MD, PhD, is the Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine at the District Hospital of Gabrovo, Bulgaria, a senior lecturer of Forensic Medicine at the Medical University of Pleven, and a national consultant of forensic medicine at the Bulgarian Ministry of Health. He is a specialist in forensic medicine (forensic pathology and clinical forensic medicine) and medical imaging (radiology). He holds a Doctor of Medicine degree and a PhD in forensic medicine and forensic entomology. Dr. Kolev received his training at the Medical University of Pleven, the Medical University of Sofia, the University of Crete, and the University Center of Legal Medicine in Lausanne-Geneva, Switzerland and other institutions.
Professional Experience: Forensic medicine since 1998: practical work (including expert witness), research and teaching. Medical imaging since 2015: applications in forensic imaging and postmortem radiology.
Dr. Kolev's practice areas include forensic pathology, forensic anthropology, forensic entomology, crime scene investigation (CSI), forensic imaging, 3D imaging and reconstruction, and clinical forensic medicine, medico-legal investigation, and expert-witnessing. He is a lecturer at the National Institute of Justice, Bulgaria, and gives lectures on postmortem CT, forensic and 3D imaging at the National Forensic Sciences University in India, as well as in Turkey, Greece, Uzbekistan, and other countries.
His specific research interests in forensic medicine and pathology include autopsy techniques, child abuse, the organization of forensic medicine, forensic entomology and entomotoxicology, postmortem imaging and forensic radiology, virtual autopsy, 3D scanning, CSI, biological traces and special light sources. He has a special interest in disaster victim identification (DVI).
He is a member of the editorial boards of several journals, including Forensic Sciences Research, the Egyptian Journal of Forensic Sciences, and the Zagazig Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology. Dr. Kolev is a delegate from Bulgaria to the European Council of Legal and Forensic Medicine (ECLFM) and a member of the executive board of the Balkan Academy of Forensic Sciences (BAFS). He is also the secretary and a member of the executive board of the Bulgarian Association of Forensic Medicine and a member of numerous professional organizations, including the International Academy of Legal Medicine (IALM), the European Association of Forensic Anthropology (FASE), and the European Association for Forensic Entomology (EAFE).
Dr. Kolev has received several national and international awards. He has been the current president of the International Association of Forensic Sciences (IAFS) since November 2023.