Enlarge image
Crime scene in Santovenia near Valladolid
Photo: Europa Press/Getty Images
In Spain, Lieutenant Colonel Pedro Alfonso Casado has been shot dead in action.
The elite policeman, also known in police circles as Perico, had been at the head of the Unidad Especial de Intervención (UEI), a kind of special task force of the Spanish Guardía Civil, for six years.
The UEI is used in special operations such as prison riots, drug smuggling or hostage situations.
During his last assignment, Pedro Alfonso Casado was supposed to negotiate with a man who had shot his neighbor in a block of flats, taken his son-in-law hostage and barricaded himself in a building, according to the Spanish newspaper El País.
When the policeman wanted to speak to the attacker, he opened the door and shot the lieutenant colonel in the head without warning.
Pedro Alfonso Casado was taken to hospital and succumbed to his injuries on Tuesday.
The Guardia Civil commemorated their colleague on Twitter: “We regret to announce the death of our colleague Pedro Alfonso Casado, head of the UEI.
Our condolences go out to family, friends and colleagues.
Death is not the end.«
The hostage-taker turned himself in hours later and was arrested by Alfonso Casado's colleagues.
Pedro Sanchez, Spain's Prime Minister, also offered his condolences to Alfonso Casado's family.
There are no words to thank him for his commitment.
kha