Russian law enforcement authorities stated Monday that a British guy recorded fighting together with Ukrainian forces in the southwestern Kursk region deals with charges of terrorism and functioning as a mercenary.
James Scott Rhys Anderson, 22, was captured in November while battling with Ukrainian forces in Kursk.
He is being held in custody in Russia.Russias Investigative Committee, which probes significant crimes, said it completed its investigation and identified that Anderson was straight involved in an armed dispute on Russian area for material gain.
He was charged with committing a terrorist act as part of an organized group causing significant home damage and running as a mercenary in an armed conflict.The very first charge brings a jail sentence of approximately 20 years, the second an additional 15 years.Investigators accused Anderson of illegally crossing the border into Russia while armed and committed criminal acts against civilians, causing significant harm to home and destabilizing the activities of the authorities.
Anderson has spoken in several videos shot by Russian authorities after he was taken prisoner late last year, appearing with his hands tied and in a jail uniform with his head shaved.In a video launched by pro-Kremlin Telegram channels in November, he stated he went to defend Ukraines International Legion after being sacked from the British army.
He informed Russias Izvestia paper he was paid $400 a month and about $60 a day while on battle missions.Moscow normally thinks about immigrants taking a trip to combat in Ukraine as mercenaries.
This makes it possible for the authorities to prosecute them under its criminal code instead of treating them as caught prisoners of war with protections and rights under the Geneva Convention.British Foreign Minister David Lammy stated in November that his government would use Anderson all the assistance that we can.
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