The moment the Prime Minister of Slovakia was shot

(Dan Tri) – Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot at least five times as he approached a crowd of supporters outside a building on the afternoon of May 15.

The bodyguard put Prime Minister Robert Fico in the car after he was shot (Photo: Reuters).

A reporter for RTV Prievidza television channel recorded the moment Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was hit by a bullet on the street and was taken to the emergency hospital on the afternoon of May 15 when he had just attended a meeting.

The video shows Mr. Fico approaching a crowd of supporters behind a barrier outside the House of Culture in the city of Handlova, about 150km northeast of the capital Bratislava.

The bodyguards still followed Mr. Fico closely.

The bodyguard team immediately divided into two response groups, one group quickly covered and put Prime Minister Fico in the car to leave the scene, while the other group controlled the suspect.

The moment the Prime Minister of Slovakia was shot

Initially, Mr. Fico was taken to a local hospital.

Slovak officials, including the Interior Minister and the Defense Minister, all said that the assassination attempt was politically motivated.

The arrested suspect is a 71-year-old man.

The suspect’s motive is unknown, but a video from TV channel TA3 shows the suspect telling police that he shot Prime Minister Fico because he disagreed with government policies.

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico (Photo: Reuters).

Prime Minister Fico is considered the most powerful politician in Slovakia.

His government has scaled back support for Ukraine while opening dialogue with Russia, sought to reduce penalties for corruption and disband the special prosecutor’s office, and reformed the broadcaster

After the assassination of Prime Minister Fico, the Slovak parliament tightened security and applied enhanced measures to ensure the safety of politicians.

President-elect Peter Pellegrini and Finance Minister  Ladislav Kamenicky decided to cut short their foreign trips to return home.

Some opinions say that the incident shows that Prime Minister Fico’s bodyguards reacted poorly and did not comply with proper protection procedures.

A former Slovak official said, the bodyguards should have shielded Prime Minister Fico as soon as the first shot was detected.