A National Police officer was killed and a bomb-disposal specialist gravely wounded on Tuesday morning in Oviedo, northern Spain, when a backpack containing an explosive device detonated at the entrance of a residential building in the Villafría neighborhood. The blast came as officers were responding to an earlier shooting in the same area that left a 17-year-old girl injured, turning a routine call into one of the deadliest incidents for Spain’s national force in recent memory.
- Key Point: The officer killed belonged to the National Police’s Canine Unit; the TEDAX explosives specialist accompanying him lost a leg and was taken to the Central University Hospital of Asturias.
- Key Point: Officers had been dispatched shortly after 7 a.m. local time following reports that a young woman had been shot during a dispute between two families.
- Key Point: The device went off at around 9 a.m. on Rafael Urrusti Street, close to the building entrance where the backpack was found.
- Key Point: A search is under way for the suspected gunman, who police sources say may still be armed; the surrounding area has been cordoned off.
How the morning unfolded
The sequence began before dawn, when emergency services received word of a shooting in the Villafría district. According to police sources cited by Spanish media, a man opened fire on a young woman during a quarrel between two local families. The victim, aged 17, was rushed to the Central University Hospital of Asturias, where she is being treated and is reported to be out of danger. Investigators have not established what triggered the shooting.
Officers who reached the building found a backpack in the entrance area. Reports describe the bag as partially open and fitted with a flashing light, a detail that prompted the officers to summon the TEDAX unit, the National Police’s specialized bomb-disposal branch. A sub-inspector from the Canine Unit moved in to examine the bag while a TEDAX colleague stood nearby. The device exploded at that moment, killing the canine handler at the scene and inflicting severe injuries on the explosives expert.
Municipal sources said Oviedo Mayor Alfredo Canteli traveled to the cordoned zone to gather information, as confusion spread over what had happened in the normally quiet neighborhood. Rafael Urrusti Street and its immediate surroundings were sealed off while forensic teams and investigators worked.
Union and force react to the deaths
The police union JUPOL voiced its grief at the loss of the officer, describing the force’s reaction as one of profound shock. The union also stressed the dangers officers face in unpredictable situations and said it was closely following the condition of the wounded TEDAX specialist.
“Deep sorrow and consternation,” JUPOL said, highlighting “the professionalism, dedication and commitment of national police officers, who daily risk their lives to protect citizens, even in situations of extreme and unpredictable risk.”
The National Police itself expressed consternation over the death of its officer and wished his injured colleague a swift recovery. The force has described the episode as a serious incident and mounted a large operation in the area, with the hunt for the suspected shooter continuing through the day.
Two investigations, many open questions
Authorities now face two parallel lines of inquiry: the shooting that wounded the teenager and the explosion that killed the officer during the subsequent response. Whether the two events are connected has not been established, and no details have been released about the composition of the device or who might have placed it. The possibility that the gunman remains at large has added urgency to the manhunt and kept residents behind police lines for hours.
The case has also renewed attention on the risks borne by Spain’s bomb-disposal teams, who are routinely called to inspect unattended bags and suspected devices in public spaces. For Oviedo, a city unaccustomed to such violence, the day’s events have left a neighborhood sealed off, a family in mourning and a police force confronting the loss of one of its own.
What happens next will depend largely on whether investigators can link the backpack to the shooting and identify those responsible. Until then, the cordon around Rafael Urrusti Street is likely to remain, and the search for the suspected gunman will continue alongside the forensic examination of the blast site.