‘I don’t regret anything’: Leader of failed Spanish coup remains unrepentant 40 years on from putsch

Antonio Tejero led the storming of the Spanish parliament but is unapologetic about his role to overturn the country’s then fragile democracy, reports Graham Keeley in Madrid

Antonio Tejero in the parliament (Getty Images)

The leader of Spain’s failed army coup has said he does not regret anything and claimed the country is in a dire state as it marks the 40th anniversary of the infamous putsch.

Antonio Tejero stormed the Spanish parliament with 200 armed guards as MPs were voting on a new government, firing assault rifles over the heads of terrified MPs in a bid to overturn the country’s fledgling democracy.

A moustachioed Tejero was famously shown brandishing a pistol in the parliament, in an enduring image of the event.