The basic suspect in the high-profile killing of Ukrainian lawyer Andrei Portnov has been transferred to Spain and placed in pre-trial detention. Oleksandr Azizov, 45, was handed over by German authorities and is being held at Soto del Real prison under a judge’s order issued on Thursday. Portnov, a former adviser to ex-president Viktor Yanukovych, was shot dead in May 2025 outside the American School in Pozuelo de Alarcón, Madrid, as he dropped off his daughters.
Investigators from Madrid’s National Police Homicide Unit tracked Azizov to Heinsberg, Germany, near the Dutch border, where he was located on February 25. Police allege Azizov fired nine shots at close range, killing Portnov. The investigation, which lasted more than a year, points to a contract killing connected to Portnov’s business activities. Portnov had moved to Madrid with his family in July 2022, settling in the La Moraleja district.
Authorities believe Azizov did not act alone. His brother, Vieli Azizov, 42, and Yuliia Skovpen, 36, are suspected of helping with the escape and remain fugitives. Police traced the getaway vehicle and linked it to the suspects. The case has drawn attention because of the alleged planning and the circumstances in which Portnov was targeted. Although he was sometimes accompanied by trusted associates for security, he did not employ professional bodyguards and felt secure in Madrid.
Azizov’s defense, led by lawyer Julen Martínez, maintains that his client was not in Madrid at the time of the murder, citing documents and a training course in Germany as an alibi. Martínez argues that the evidence is circumstantial, relying on vehicle ownership and phone records, and says there is no forensic proof or reliable identification linking Azizov to the crime scene or the weapon.
Police believe Portnov’s routine of personally taking his children to school made him an accessible target. Months before the murder, Portnov attempted to transfer ownership of a €2.5 million mansion near Kyiv to his children, using a Madrid notary and his Ukrainian lawyer, Marina Parinova. Investigators believe the transaction may have revealed his location to those planning the attack. The American School in Pozuelo, attended by children of diplomats and prominent figures, became the scene of the fatal shooting after the suspects reportedly monitored Portnov’s movements and identified a moment when he was especially vulnerable.
The case is among several high-profile crimes in Spain involving complex motives and international suspects. In a separate case, a court in Alicante sentenced a couple to more than 13 years in prison for killing and dismembering their flatmate. That case also involved financial motives and attracted impressive public attention. Read more in this report on a similar criminal case in Alicante.
Azizov’s extradition brings the case into the Spanish judicial process. The proceedings are expected to examine evidence concerning the alleged contract killing and the suspected role of accomplices, including any possible connection to business disputes involving Portnov. The defense disputes the prosecution’s case and maintains that Azizov was in Germany when the murder took place.
