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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
World
Kirsty Card & Ryan Fahey

Russians taunt captured British soldier and claim Ukraine sent him to die in war

A second British fighter captured by Russian troops has been paraded on TV and told he was sent to his death in Ukraine.

Ex-British Army soldier Shaun Pinner, 48, was a mercenary fighting with Ukrainian soldiers in Mariupol - which has now been destroyed by Russian shelling.

He claims to have been there for five to six weeks before appearing on the broadcast with no visible wounds, giving information about his service.

During the interview with Andrey Rudenko on a Russian military TV channel, the state-aligned journalist told Shaun his unit didn't have a "single chance of reaching safety", the Daily Star reports.

Rudenko added: “The servicemen of the 36th brigade say their command specially sent them to be killed in order to make heroes out of them later."

Shaun is pictured with his wife Larysa (social media/e2w)

Shaun himself said in the interview: "I am Shaun Pinner. I am a citizen of the United Kingdom. I was captured in Mariupol. I am part of the 36th brigade, 1st Battalion Ukrainian Marine.

"I was fighting in Mariupol for five to six weeks and now I am in the Donetsk People's Republic."

The propaganda clip posted on Twitter carried the caption: "Another mercenary was caught in Mariupol. Shaun Pinner is an English mercenary.

"He says that he no longer needs the war and he wants to go home. He won't make it home."

Shaun was referred to as a hired mercenary during the broadcast (social media/e2w)

It was announced on Saturday that Pinner now faces interrogation by the Russian Investigative Committee, but he has allegedly told Russians "he doesn't want war and wants to go home.".

Concerns were raised for his safety as it was feared he could be treated as a spy.

His fate remains in the hands of Russian officials.

The fighter appears to be the second British soldier to be captured by the Kremlin after a former care worker Aiden Aslin was seized on April 12.

The 28-year-old, who was also quizzed on TV, was forced to surrender along with the rest of the Ukrainian 36th Marine Brigade unit when they ran out of ammunition and food.

Looking drained, and with a nasty-looking gash on his forehead, Aiden was quizzed about his combat service.

"Tell me, did you kill people?" the interviewer asks, to which Aiden replies: "I don't know..." before adding "I didn't do any fighting".

When asked if he saw how people were killed, Aiden looks off-camera before answering "no".

Russia has accused Aiden of being involved in artillery attacks on children and said he "will face justice" in the breakaway Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.

Aiden's MP, Robert Jenrick, said: "I am very concerned for the safety of my constituent.

"Using images of prisoners of war for propaganda is wrong and in contravention of the Geneva Convention."

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