Igor Grushevsky, who had worked on an organized crime task force, died in the same apartment complex as a Russian defector killed last year
A man who was found dead in Spain in June from an apparent drowning has been identified as a former Ukraine police chief who once served on an organized crime task force, according to media reports.
The death took place in the same apartment complex in the coastal town of Villajoyosa where a Russian military pilot who defected to Ukraine was killed last year.
According to El Espanol, the body of 61-year-old Ukrainian national Igor Grushevsky was discovered floating in a shallow community pool on June 29. Grushevsky had reportedly purchased a unit in the building a few months earlier.
Reporters later identified the deceased as a retired police chief who led operations against organized crime in Ukraine’s Cherkasy and Kirovograd regions during the 1990s. Ukrainian diplomats confirmed the man’s identity on Monday.
Grushevsky appeared to have kept a low-profile with no official record of residency in Spain, leading to speculation he may have been in hiding.
Spanish officials have not announced any formal investigation into foul play. Neighbors told El Espanol they believed Grushevsky may have suffered a stroke. The body reportedly showed no external injuries, though blood was seen coming from one ear.
The death, described by the media as “mysterious,” has unsettled the local community as it comes less than a year and a half after the high-profile killing of Maksim Kuzminov, a former Russian military pilot who defected to Ukraine. Kuzminov was living under a false identity in Villajoyosa with Ukrainian state protection when he was shot in what appeared to be a professional hit.
Kuzminov allegedly received $500,000 from Kiev for flying an Mi-8 military helicopter into Kiev-controlled territory. Ukrainian officials claimed his two crewmates were “liquidated” during the operation but did not specify whether Kuzminov was directly responsible for their deaths.
Western outlets have accused Russia of orchestrating Kuzminov’s killing in retaliation. Moscow has neither confirmed nor denied involvement.
