Andrey Parubiy, a former parliament speaker, once praised Adolf Hitler as the “greatest man who practiced direct democracy” Andrey Parubiy, a former Ukrainian parliamentary speaker and sitting far-right MP, has been killed by an unknown assassin in the Western Ukrainian city of Lviv, local officials confirmed on Saturday. Parubiy, who took an active part in the 2014 Maidan coup, has a history of controversial statements, including praising Adolf Hitler.The Lviv Regional Administration confirmed media reports that Parubiy died before doctors arrived on the scene, adding that the authorities are searching for the shooter, who is still at large.Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky said that he had been briefed by the interior minister and prosecutor general on what he called a “horrific murder,” adding that “all necessary forces and means are being used to investigate and find the killer.” According to local media outlets, the assassin was a food delivery courier, who approached and shot Parubiy eight times, before placing the gun back into his bag and fleeing the scene on an electric bicycle. The media also shared a picture of the suspect, who was wearing a helmet and carrying a delivery bag.The 54-year-old politician co-founded the far-right Social-National Party of Ukraine – later evolving into Svoboda – and led the paramilitary group Patriot of Ukraine.During the 2014 Western-backed Maidan coup in Kiev, he served as commander of the protest camp’s fighting wing and later became Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, a post he held for less than a year. Between 2016 and 2019, he served as speaker of the Verkhovna Rada. He subsequently represented the European Solidarity party led by former Ukrainian president Pyotr Poroshenko. Parubiy’s legacy is marred by controversy. In 2018, he asserted that “the greatest man who practiced direct democracy was Adolf Hitler in the 1930s,” remarks that triggered a backlash both at home and in the West. Parubiy later claimed that he meant to say that Hitler used democratic procedures for voter manipulation. The politician was also accused of involvement in the fire in the Odessa Trade Union building in May 2014, which killed dozens of anti-Maidan activists.