Second UK soldier captured and paraded on social media
ANOTHER British soldier fighting with the Ukrainian army was paraded on TV and social media last night after being captured by Russian forces.
Shaun Pinner, 48, who was interviewed by The Mail on Sunday in January as Vladimir Putin prepared his invasion, was captured in the besieged city of Mariupol.
He has since been taken to the Russian-controlled Donetsk region where he was filmed for a 23-second propaganda video broadcast on Russian TV and pro-Kremlin social-media sites.
Looking exhausted and appearing to have bruises around his eyes, he says: ‘Hi, I’m Shaun Pinner. I am a citizen of the UK. I was captured in Mariupol and I am part of the 36 Brigade First Battalion Ukrainian Marines.
‘I was fighting in Mariupol for five to six weeks and now I’m in Donetsk People’s Republic.’
It is not known when the video was filmed or when Mr Pinner was captured. It comes days after footage of Mr Pinner’s friend, Aiden Aslin, 28, was released on the internet after he was captured.
Mr Pinner, originally from Bedfordshire and a former member of the Royal Anglian Regiment, had been fighting with Mr Aslin in trenches outside Mariupol.
He went to Ukraine four years ago, where he married a local woman. In January, he said he had travelled to Ukraine to be a contract soldier and eventually became a fully-fledged marine in the country’s army.
Speaking from a trench ten miles outside Mariupol, he said: ‘I am here defending my family and adopted city.
‘Russia started this war. It’s funded by Russia and driven by Russia, but we will fight them, make no mistake about that.’
Mr Pinner also spoke of his fear of capture. ‘I fear for my life. The Russians will treat us differently if we are captured because we are British. This is always on my mind, that I will be captured.’
The propaganda video featuring Mr Pinner was made by Russian journalist Andrey Rudenko, who works closely with Russian state TV. He also shot the footage of Mr Aslin.
The latest video was posted on Twitter with the caption: ‘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.
‘Captured Ukrainian soldiers testify about the atrocities of foreign mercenaries. And after the trial, they face the death penalty.’
Mr Pinner’s friends expressed deep concern for his safety.
Jayson Pihajlic, a UK-based friend, said: ‘Another former comrade of ours has been captured. Social media seems to be the reason Aiden has not yet been executed.
‘I hope the same for my brother Shaun Pinner.’