MADRID/MOSCOW, May 21. /TASS/. Madrid's national police confirmed to TASS that Andrey Portnov, who served as deputy head of the presidential administration and a former advisor to Ukrainian ex-President Viktor Yanukovych (2010-2014), was shot dead near the Spanish capital.
"Yes, I confirm it," a police spokesperson said.
The incident took place in Madrid’s wealthy suburb Pozuelo de Alarcon near the entrance to a local school.
"The crime reeks of an extrajudicial execution. It is hard to believe that this is just some random killing, given the insurance shot to the head," Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador at Large on Kiev’s War Crimes Rodion Miroshnik said on his Telegram channel, also suggesting that the Zelensky regime may have been involved.
He said that Portnov could have had information that would have caused problems for Vladimir Zelensky and his entourage.
"Portnov was a high-ranking official during Yanukovich’s rule. He may well have had compromising information from the ‘forgotten past' that could ruin the ‘impeccable reputation’ of some individuals in the current government. This could be damning evidence against someone from Zelensky's entourage, or Zelensky himself," he said.
Miroshnik told TASS that it's doubtful other countries or figures would have had such an interest in keeping Portnov quiet.
"The information that Portnov had at his disposal could well have been compromising for someone who now holds power, because they all, starting with Zelensky and a number of other characters who are now part of his entourage had direct, sometimes very close relations with the Yanukovich administration and other officials who are currently considered 'toxic'," the diplomat said.
Former Ukrainian Security Service officer Vasily Prozorov agreed, saying that he had no doubt Kiev was involved in the crime.
"I don't see anything surprising in this undoubtedly sad incident. The Ukrainian government is still following the path of terror," Prozorov told TASS.
In his opinion, Kiev may also be trying to distract attention from failures on the front line.
"In this case, it is very interesting that Portnov's murder coincided with yesterday's missile strike on the base camp of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the Sumy Region," he said.
According to the ABC newspaper, the shooting occurred after Portnov dropped his children off at school, considered to be one of the best in the area. The police are investigating the incident, and are looking into all possible motives, including financial, personal and political.
Portnov, born in 1973, served as deputy head of the Presidential Administration and advisor to Yanukovich in 2010-2013.
A lawyer by trade, he was behind multiple legal actions against former President of Ukraine Pyotr Poroshenko. In January-February 2014, when the violent Maidan riots took place, he held the position of first deputy head of the Yanukovich administration. Many claimed that he was also involved in crafting legislation to tighten penalties on citizens who take part in unauthorized protests, although he himself denied this.
Portnov served as a deputy in the Verkhovna Rada parliament from 2006-2010. He was elected from the Yulia Timoshenko bloc, which, as a lawyer, he also defended in court. While serving as deputy head of the Yanukovich administration, he was also a member of the board of the National Bank of Ukraine, the State Export-Import Bank. According to the Ukrainian media, he left Ukraine for Europe in 2022.
According to ABC, the assailant in the shooting, who was described as wearing a blue tracksuit, fled the scene, and a search is underway. It is possible that he had accomplices.