A former senior Ukrainian official, Andriy Portnov, was fatally shot outside an American school in Madrid on Wednesday morning. The incident occurred in the Pozuelo de Alarcón area shortly after Portnov dropped off his children at the school. Witnesses reported hearing five or six gunshots, with one student mistaking the sounds for fireworks. Portnov, 51, was struck multiple times in the back and head. The assailant, described as a thin man in a blue tracksuit, fled the scene, possibly with an accomplice on a motorbike. As of the latest reports, no arrests have been made.
Portnov had a controversial political career, serving as a deputy head in the administration of ousted pro-Russian president Viktor Yanukovych. He was sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury in 2021 for allegedly undermining judicial reforms. After the 2014 Ukrainian revolution, he left Ukraine but returned in 2019 following President Volodymyr Zelensky’s election. He left again in 2021 and has been living in Spain since then.
The motive behind the shooting remains unclear. Spanish authorities are investigating the incident, but no arrests have been reported as of now.
