Police in Colombia said on Wednesday that they had detained a Venezuelan suspected of being involved in the attempted assassination of Alejo Vidal-Quadras, a co-founder of Spain’s far-right Vox party, in Madrid last year.
The arrested man, identified as Greg Oliver Higuera Marcano, was wanted in connection with the attack that targeted the 78-year-old Vidal-Quadras, a former leader of Spain’s main right-wing PP party in Catalonia, and who later played a role in establishing Vox. He survived after being shot in the head in November last year.
According to the Colombian police, Spanish investigations suggested that Higuera had played a logistical role in the assault on Vidal-Quadras. Higuera was ‘detected’ by immigration officials on Tuesday while attempting ‘to enter Colombia via the Simon Bolivar International Bridge’ on the Venezuelan border. The police statement indicated that a ‘coordination process’ was underway to present Higuera before a court in Spain.
Vidal-Quadras, after leading the PP party in Catalonia during the 1990s, later became a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) and one of the founders of Vox, from which he eventually departed soon after its creation.
He has accused the Iranian regime of orchestrating the assassination attempt. ALSO READ: Possible Iran link, after Spanish right-wing politician shot in the face in Madrid.
In November last year, Spain announced the arrest of three individuals implicated in the ‘attempted terrorist assassination’ of Vidal-Quadras, who has close ties to the exiled Iranian opposition. ALSO READ: Three arrested in Andalusia over alleged connection to shooting of Vidal-Quadras.
The identity of the gunman, described by Spanish authorities as a Frenchman of Tunisian origin, remains unknown as he has not been apprehended.
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