A Russian court has sentenced a 22-year-old British man to 19 years in prison for fighting alongside Ukrainian forces against Russia.
James Scott Rhys Anderson, from Banbury, England, was captured in November while fighting in the Kursk border region. He was found guilty of a “terrorist act” and acting as a mercenary.
According to the court, Anderson admitted to taking part in the armed conflict for financial gain, stating he was paid $400 per month and $60 per day for combat missions.
The court also mentioned that Anderson would spend the first five years of his sentence in a prison with harsher conditions, followed by 14 years in a high-security penal colony.
Anderson had previously served in the British army but was sacked before joining Ukraine’s International Legion.
This sentence comes after two British fighters were sentenced to death in 2022 for fighting for Ukraine, but were later released in a prisoner exchange.
The British government has not yet commented on Anderson’s sentence.
