Spanish police have announced that a Tunisian migrant, who is a resident in France, is wanted for the attempted assassination of former Spanish politician Alejo Vidal-Quadras. The victim was shot on Nov. 9 on the streets of Madrid, and the suspect, who remains on the run, is considered armed and dangerous.
Vidal-Quadras, a co-founder of the Spanish Vox party, was targeted in a terror attack, having been shot in the head. The attempted murder resulted in a double fracture to his jaw. However, he miraculously survived the shooting without ever having lost consciousness after the bullet went through one side of his jaw and out the other. He was subsequently released from the hospital.
Following the shooting, a number of arrests have already been made, with one suspect placed in pre-trial detention for “attempted terrorist assassination,” according to a Madrid court.
In a press release from the National Court, it stated that “the judge decided to place the detainee in pre-trial detention for the offense of attempted terrorist assassination in Lanjaron.” The suspect’s partner was also arrested alongside him, and a third suspect was arrested in the south in Malaga.
These three suspects are two Spanish citizens along with a British citizen. They are thought to have provided logistical assistance to the main shooting suspect, who remains on the run.
According to media reports, the 78-year-old politician was walking down the street when a motorcycle approached him. The driver pulled out a pistol and shot the politician at point-blank range.
Vidal-Quadras has since accused the Iranian government of being behind the assassination attempt. He is connected to an Iranian opposition group, the National Council of Resistance of Iran, which he says may have been a motive in the attempted murder. Iran has added him to a terror list.
He was once a member of the center-right Popular Party (PP) during the 1990s. He later served as an MEP and then helped found the Vox party, but he left quickly after it was created. Vidal-Quadras has remained active in politics and has regularly appeared on talk shows to discuss a variety of political themes.