Latest news with #Yanukovych
Saudi Gazette
25-05-2025
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Controversial ex-Ukrainian official shot dead in Madrid
KYIV — The fatal shooting of Andriy Portnov, a former top Ukrainian official, in a Madrid suburb has triggered a wave of speculation and little public sympathy in his home country, where he is widely viewed as a symbol of systemic corruption and Russian influence. Portnov, 51, was gunned down in a parking lot after dropping off his children at the American School of Madrid. Spanish police found him lying face down in gym clothes. While shocking, the killing has not sparked mourning in Ukraine, where media outlets and commentators have focused on his controversial legacy rather than the circumstances of his death. Often referred to as the architect of a judicial system that critics say protected corruption and undermined reform, Portnov held powerful roles during the presidency of Viktor Yanukovych, who was ousted during Ukraine's 2014 Maidan Revolution. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's administration has made no comment on the killing, while some security sources are reportedly distancing Kyiv from involvement. Although Ukraine has carried out targeted killings in Russian-occupied territories and inside Russia, a politically motivated assassination in Spain would mark a significant media have also speculated that the motive may have been personal or financial, rather than critics describe him as a manipulative power broker with deep ties to pro-Kremlin serving as legal adviser to former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, he switched sides in 2010 to join Yanukovych's administration, rising to become deputy head of the presidential was instrumental in shaping Ukraine's legal framework during a time when Western governments, including the U.S., accused his office of manipulating court decisions and planting loyal rights monitors and journalists accuse him of using the courts to silence dissent. 'When people exposed his corruption, he accused them of fake news,' said Oksana Romaniuk, director of the Institute of Mass reporters say he used threats and defamation lawsuits to target media outlets and individual the fall of Yanukovych, Portnov moved to Moscow and was later found to have ties to Kremlin-backed media and intelligence-linked operations. In 2019, he briefly returned to Ukraine before fleeing again in being sanctioned by the U.S. for judicial interference and alleged corrupt activities, Portnov lived openly in Europe in recent years, even enrolling his children in one of Spain's most prestigious private presence in Spain and his death have raised questions about how he continued to move freely despite his theories swirl over whether Russian intelligence, criminal networks, or private enemies were behind the killing, legal expert Mykhailo Zhernakov says Portnov's death should not be mistaken for justice.'Just because he's gone doesn't mean his influence has,' he said, warning that many of the officials Portnov once empowered remain entrenched in Ukraine's legal system.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'Architect of Yanukovych's corrupt system' — Who was Andriy Portnov, a Ukrainian ex-official killed in Spain
Andriy Portnov had been no stranger to controversy. He was the architect of Ukraine's judiciary, corrupt and unreformed, and had been known to attack everyone who dared to speak out. Portnov was the epitome of a Kremlin-friendly Ukraine of President Viktor Yanukovych, where fair trial was a luxury and civil liberties were a dream. "It doesn't matter to us whether he was a useful idiot or a paid agent," Yaroslav Yurchyshyn, a lawmaker from the liberal Holos party, told the Kyiv Independent. "But he undoubtedly acted in Russia's interests." "He was an architect of Yanukovych's corrupt system and personally influenced the appointment of judges," Mykhailo Zhernakov, head of judicial watchdog Dejure, told the Kyiv Independent. His life ended in a way that symbolized that long-gone system — killed without a trial. Until his last days, Portnov was reportedly wielding immense influence on the judiciary and interfering with the courts despite being absent from Ukraine for years. Portnov has denied the accusations of acting in the Kremlin's interests and illegally interfering in the judiciary, suing news outlets that dared to make that statement. Fighting with journalists, businessmen, politicians, and everyone else, the list of Portnov's enemies was immense. As such, the case in itself will be a complicated endeavor, as finding the perpetrators would be an uneasy task. Read also: Controversial Ukrainian ex-official Portnov shot dead in Madrid, source says Portnov, born in now-occupied Luhansk in 1973, had a law degree from the city's East Ukrainian National University. In the 1990s and 2000s, he worked as a private lawyer and an official at the State Securities and Stock Market Commission. From 2005 to 2010, Portnov was an ally of then-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and a lawmaker representing her party in parliament. After Tymoshenko lost the 2010 presidential election to Yanukovych, Portnov switched to the latter and became his deputy chief of staff responsible for the judiciary. Tymoshenko, Yanukovych's main political opponent, was jailed in a politically motivated case at the same time as Portnov ran the judicial system in Yanykovych's interests. Portnov also led the development of Ukraine's Criminal Procedure Code, which was adopted in 2012 and was later criticized for creating obstacles for a fair trial and obstructing the investigation of corruption. Yurchyshyn said that, under Yanukovych, Portnov spearheaded the subordination of the judiciary to the presidential administration. The Ukrainian judiciary's current problems and challenges partially stem from Portnov's activities, he added. In 2019, a judiciary source told journalists that would later found the Kyiv Independent that Portnov and Andriy Bohdan, who would later become President Volodymyr Zelensky's chief of staff, had pressured Petro Stetsyuk, a judge of the Constitutional Court, to issue a ruling to help Yanukovych monopolize power. In 2010, a Constitutional Court ruling allowed lawmakers to switch parties, allowing dozens of lawmakers to leave Tymoshenko's party and join that of Yanukovych. Soon, the parliament was under Yanukovych's full control. Bohdan did not respond to requests for comment. After Yanukovych was ousted by the EuroMaidan Revolution in 2014, Portnov left Ukraine and moved to Vienna. He also bought real estate in Moscow and its vicinity, according to the Schemes investigative journalism project. Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office charged Portnov with embezzlement and abuse of power in 2014, but the case was later closed. In 2018, the Security Service of Ukraine also opened a treason case against Portnov over his alleged participation in Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea. However, he was not officially charged, and the case was closed in 2019. Portnov was also sanctioned by the EU along with other top Yanukovych associates in 2014 but the sanctions were lifted in 2016 due to a lack of evidence in the criminal cases against him. He kept his influence in Ukraine even after the EuroMaidan Revolution and owned the pro-Russian TV channel NewsOne in 2018. Read also: Ukraine's tainted judges get a helping hand from law enforcement to stay in office After Zelensky was elected president in 2019, Portnov returned to Ukraine and reportedly increased his influence on the political system and law enforcement. Bohdan, who was Zelensky's chief of staff from 2019 to 2020, said then that he had been friends with Portnov for many years. He had also been an aide to Portnov from 2007 to 2009. Another Portnov associate, Oleh Tatarov, was appointed Zelensky's deputy chief of staff in charge of law enforcement in 2020. Tatarov had defended Portnov's interests as a lawyer after the EuroMaidan Revolution. Tatarov also gained notoriety after being charged with bribery in 2020, although the case against him was dropped by law enforcement and closed the following year. For anti-corruption activists, he has become a symbol of Zelensky's tolerance for graft. Under Zelensky, Portnov initiated several criminal cases against ex-President Petro Poroshenko, Zelensky's main political opponent. Portnov also maintained links with Ukraine's most controversial judge, Pavlo Vovk. Vovk has become a symbol of lawlessness and corruption in Ukraine. He has been charged in several cases for alleged obstruction of justice and corruption, sanctioned by the U.S. in 2022 and eventually fired in 2025. In 2019, Portnov, Bohdan, and Vovk allegedly discussed appointing Oleksandr Tupytsky as chairman of the Constitutional Court, according to audio recordings cited by news outlets Slidstvo, Censor, and the Kyiv Post at the time. Tupytsky became the court's head the same year, and under his leadership, the Constitutional Court undermined several anti-corruption reforms, including by destroying the online asset declaration system for top officials. Tupytsky was fired and charged in several criminal cases in 2021. He fled Ukraine and moved to Vienna in 2022. Yurchyshyn argued that, through Tupytsky's court, Portnov undermined Ukrainian reforms in the interests of Russia since they jeopardized the country's European integration. Both Portnov and Tupytsky were sanctioned by the U.S. in 2019. The U.S. Treasury Department said that "in mid-2019, Portnov colluded with a high-ranking Ukrainian government official to shape the country's higher legal institutions to their advantage and influence Ukraine's Constitutional Court." The department also said that Portnov "took steps to control the Ukrainian judiciary, influence associated legislation, sought to place loyal officials in senior judiciary positions, and purchase court decisions" in 2019. Portnov and Vovk also influenced the appointment of Bohdan Monich as head of Ukraine's Council of Judges, a self-regulation body, in 2019, according to audio recordings cited by Slidstvo. Monich did not respond to a request for comment. The Council of Judges regulates the daily work of the country's judiciary, the control of which allegedly gave Portnov once again vast powers over the country's unreformed court system. After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Portnov left Ukraine in June 2022, according to the Schemes news outlet. While abroad, Portnov has been eager to whitewash his reputation, tainted in Ukraine. He routinely filed libel lawsuits against independent media that criticized him, reportedly using his influence over the judiciary to win cases. One of the lawsuits was filed against several media outlets and Olga Rudenko, the chief editor of the Kyiv Independent, over an article in which he was referenced as being "pro-Russian." The lawsuit concerned a story by Glib Kanievskyi, then a Ukrainian journalist and currently a defense ministry official, published in several news outlets, including the Kyiv Independent, in September 2023. A Kyiv court ruled in Portnov's favor in September 2024. In a separate case, Portnov published the detailed information about journalists investigating him, including a car license and a home address adding that the journalists should be 'careful' driving at night. "It was systematic work aimed at hampering the functioning of independent media," Yurchyshyn said. Read also: Ukraine's judicial reform relaunch shows mixed results so far Portnov, whose location wasn't known to the wider public, was shot dead by unidentified attackers outside the American School in Madrid on May 21. The shooting took place at around 9:15 a.m. local time, with Portnov being shot at five times and suffering at least three wounds to his head and torso, Spanish newspaper El Pais reported, citing undisclosed police sources. The shot to the head proved fatal, the outlet wrote. Two or three people are believed to be involved in the attack, though no arrests have been made so far. The newspaper's sources suggested debt issues as a possible motive. Criminal proceedings are underway. Read also: Ukraine imposes sanctions on petty pro-Russian politicians, yet ignores most high-profile ones We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Los Angeles Times
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Advisor to Ukrainian ex-President Yanukovych shot dead outside American School in Spain
MADRID — Spanish authorities said that an advisor to former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was shot dead on Wednesday when gunmen targeted him outside the American School of Madrid. Andrii Portnov, 51, was identified as the victim by Spain's Interior Ministry. He was shot at 9:15 a.m. local time, authorities said, after apparently dropping his children off for class. Witnesses reported that Portnov was shot 'several times' in the head and body by more than one gunman when he was getting into his car, a black Mercedes Benz, police said. The assailants then fled on foot. Madrid's emergency services said that he was found dead when medics arrived with at least three shots to his body. Portnov is a former Ukrainian politician closely tied to Yanukovych, having served as deputy head of the presidential office from 2010 to 2014. During Yanukovych's presidency, Portnov was widely viewed as a pro-Russia political figure and was involved in drafting legislation aimed at persecuting participants of the 2014 revolution in Ukraine. Luis Rayo, 19, who lives in a building next to the school, said that he was sleeping when he heard the sound of gunfire. 'I heard five bullets and then came here to see what happened,' Rayo said. Police cordoned off a crime scene in a parking lot around 500 feet outside the gate of the American School of Madrid, located in the upscale Pozuelo de Alarcón neighborhood north of the city center. Parents told the Associated Press that Portnov had children studying at the private school. The school declined to confirm whether his children were enrolled. Timur Ayaokur, 17, said he was 20 minutes into his first class of the day when he and his classmates heard of the shooting. After a few minutes, the school's administrators told students that a man had been shot and pronounced dead outside. 'I thought it was a drill,' Timur, who is in 11th grade, said of the initial announcement. 'I was worried because at first I thought it might be a parent of someone I know.' His mother, Elina Ayaokur, originally from Azerbaijan, said she knew the victim through the Russian community though she did not know him well. 'I didn't know there were Ukrainian politicians there,' Ayaokur said, adding that the victim had a son in the fourth grade. 'I was in shock, like how is it possible that this happens here?' Ayaokur said. After fleeing Ukraine in 2014, Portnov reportedly lived in Russia in 2015 before relocating to Austria. It wasn't immediately clear when he moved to Spain. In 2018, Ukraine's Security Service opened an investigation against him on suspicion of state treason, alleging his involvement in Russia's illegal annexation of the Crimean peninsula. The criminal case was closed in 2019. In 2021, the United States imposed personal sanctions on Portnov, designating him as someone 'responsible for or complicit in, or [who] has directly or indirectly engaged in, corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery.' Wilson and Naishadham write for the Associated Press. Wilson reported from Barcelona, Spain. Illia Novikov contributed to this report from Kyiv, Ukraine.
Arab Times
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Arab Times
Adviser to Ukraine's ex-president Yanukovych shot dead outside American School in Spain
MADRID, May 21, (AP): Spanish authorities said that an adviser to former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych was shot dead on Wednesday when gunmen targeted him outside the American School of Madrid. Andrii Portnov, 51, was identified as the victim by Spain's Interior Ministry. He was shot at 9:15 a.m. local time (0715 GMT), authorities said, after apparently dropping his children off for class. Witnesses reported that Portnov was shot "several times' in the head and body by more than one gunman when he was getting into his car, a black Mercedes Benz, police said. The assailants then fled on foot. Madrid's emergency services said that he was found dead when medics arrived with at least three shots to his body. Portnov is a former Ukrainian politician closely tied to Yanukovych, having served as deputy head of the presidential office from 2010 to 2014. During Yanukovych's presidency, Portnov was widely viewed as a pro-Russia political figure and was involved in drafting legislation aimed at persecuting participants of the 2014 revolution in Ukraine. Luis Rayo, 19, who lives in a building next to the school, said that he was sleeping when he heard the sound of gunfire. "I heard five bullets and then came here to see what happened,' Rayo said. Police cordoned off a crime scene in a parking lot around 150 meters (500 feet) outside the gate of the American School of Madrid, located in the upscale Pozuelo de Alarcón neighborhood north of the city center. Parents told The Associated Press that Portnov had children studying at the private school. The school declined to confirm whether his children were enrolled. Timur Ayaokur, 17, said he was 20 minutes into his first class of the day when he and his classmates heard of the shooting. After a few minutes, the school's administrators told students that a man had been shot and pronounced dead outside. "I thought it was a drill,' Ayaokur, who is in 11th grade, said of the initial announcement. "I was worried because at first I thought it might be a parent of someone I know." His mother Elina Ayaokur, originally from Azerbaijan, said she knew the victim through the Russian community though she did not know him well.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Sanctioned Ukrainian ex-politician killed outside Madrid's American school, police source says
Former Ukrainian politician Andriy Portnov, who worked as a senior aide to pro-Russian former President Viktor Yanukovych, has been shot dead outside a school near the Spanish capital Madrid, a Spanish national police source told CNN. Portnov, 51, was shot several times as he was getting into a car around 9:15 a.m. local time (3:15 a.m. ET), the police source said. Various assailants shot him in the back and the head, and later fled into a wooded area, the source said. The shooting took place outside The American School of Madrid, located in Pozuelo de Alaracon, an affluent suburb just west of Madrid. The school sent out various urgent messages to parents following the incident, which took place shortly after school drop-off, noting that all students were safe and the victim is believed to be the father of a student, a source close to the school told CNN. The school has just over 1,000 students from the United States, Spain and several dozen other countries. Portnov was sanctioned by the United States in 2021 for corruption and bribery under the Magnitsky Act. He was 'credibly accused of using his influence to buy access and decisions in Ukraine's courts and undermining reform effort,' according to the US Treasury Department. The Magnitsky Act, signed into law in December 2012, blocks entry into the US and freezes the assets of certain Russian and pro-Russian government officials and businessmen accused of human rights violations. The Security Service of Ukraine previously investigated Portnov's possible involvement in Russia's annexation of Crimea, but the case was later closed. The former politician fled Ukraine months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to an investigation by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, when men of draft age were not permitted to leave. Canada also froze his assets in 2014 as part of a crackdown on 'corrupt foreign officials,' in relation to his work as a former adviser to ousted ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. Portnov was appointed deputy head of Yanukovych's administration in 2010, as well as the head of Ukraine's Main Directorate for Judicial Reform and Judicial System. At the same time, Portnov became a member of the board of the National Bank of Ukraine. Yanukovych was driven from office by mass demonstrations in Ukraine in 2014 after he turned his back on the European Union in favor of closer ties with Russia. Yanukovych then fled Ukraine for Russia, along with Portnov and other high-level former officials in the wake of the 2014 pro-democracy, pro-European Maidan protests. Portnov later returned to Ukraine in 2019. Ukraine itself never imposed sanctions on Portnov. In December 2024, media and civil society organizations in the country launched a petition demanding sanctions against him, alleging continued corruption aimed at controlling the Ukrainian judiciary, and highlighting concerns that he was going after critical journalists with lawsuits and threats. Portnov once released the personal data of several members of an investigative journalism project run by RFE/RL, who were looking into his dealings with the Ukrainian government. The petition gathered 25,000 signatures, but Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers rejected it, citing insufficient grounds for sanctions. Portnov is not the only ally of former Ukrainian President Yanukovych who was killed after he was ousted from power. In 2015, CNN reported on two high-profile shooting deaths in the Ukrainian capital – one of a former member of parliament with ties to Yanukovych, the other of a Ukrainian journalist known for his pro-Russian views. At the time, those killings renewed speculation about a conspiracy to kill people close to Yanukovych, after three former members of parliament from his political party died by suspected suicide, found dead in their homes. Al Goodman reported from Madrid. Lauren Kent and Jack Guy wrote and reported from London.
