Russian Mistress To Politician Shot Dead By Masked Assassin

Russian dancer was shot dead on a Moscow street after having an affair with a man reported to be a politician.  Natalia Pronina, 30, was hunted down by a masked assassin who fired a pistol from close range.

The talented dancer was murdered as she returned home from a choreography session and the attacker reportedly released a stun grenade to distract attention from the shooting.

Police sources believe the shooter may have been a contract killer paid to take her out.

Cops are investigating a theory that she had been in a long term but secret relationship with a wealthy man - believed to be an MP - who trained in martial arts, reports Moskovsky Komsomolets.

They had been dating until this summer but when the MP's wife learned about the affair she allegedly faced threats from the woman, the paper said.

Her boyfriend Alexander Kravchenko, 33, has denied any link to the murder and said he was in Yalta in the Crimea, where he works, at the time.

He claimed she had a stalker and separately that she had a £6,000 debt that she needed to repay.

It was also reported that the assassin, dressed in a hoodie and wearing a mask and glasses, had used a non-lethal self-defence gun redesigned for shooting with real bullets.

Friends have suggested she was killed on the orders of someone whose advances she had rejected.

A friend named Valeria told Komsomolskaya Pravda: “Only one of her admirers could be behind this because of jealousy.”

A former dancing colleague Anzhelika appeared to back the theory a spurned admirer could have been behind the killing.

“Natasha not only danced beautifully, she is a real beauty,” she said.

“Men always clung to her and it is possible that one of the rejected fans could have killed her.

But she added: “She did not have a serious relationship. She was not the type who dreams of a white dress and a bunch of kids.

“Her work was her life. She earned well, she could afford a lot.”