Murder near prestigious school in Spain: media reports death of Andriy Portnov

On Wednesday, May 21, in the suburbs of Madrid, in the city of Pozuelo de Alarcón, a terrible incident occurred – a 52-year-old man was shot dead on the street near the prestigious American College. The crime occurred at approximately 9:15 a.m., when the victim, Andriy Portnov, suffered several gunshot wounds. The emergency services immediately confirmed the death.

According to Spanish media, Portnov, a former Ukrainian official and advisor to President Viktor Yanukovych, died from five gunshot wounds to the back and head. The attacker shot from behind, one of the bullets hit the neck; and after Portnov fell, the criminal finished him off with a shot to the head.

The incident occurred at a time when he was picking up children. According to available information, the attacker was dressed in a blue tracksuit and was carrying a waist bag. He is currently wanted, with the possibility that he may have accomplices.

Andriy Portnov was a prominent figure in Ukrainian politics during the Yanukovych administration, notably initiating the “dictatorial” laws of January 16, 2014, which restricted the rights of protesters during the Euromaidan. In 2014, Portnov was placed on the European Union’s sanctions list on suspicion of involvement in embezzlement of public funds and human rights abuses in Ukraine.

After leaving Ukraine in 2015, Portnov settled first in Austria and then Russia. Since 2019, he has been appearing as a lawyer and media expert in Ukraine. However, in 2022, after the start of a full-scale invasion, he finally left.

Journalists discovered that Portnov had business ties with Russian individuals, including close friends of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and discovered his properties near Kyiv. As part of cooperation with a public organization that spread disinformation about Ukraine, Russian representatives used this data to spread accusations against Ukrainians.

Evidence of his ties to Kremlin politicians was also found, and the assets of his common-law wife, including businesses in Russia, became the subject of investigations.