A court in the DPR convicted in absentia an Irish mercenary who fought for the Armed Forces of Ukraine

The Supreme Court of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) has sentenced Irish citizen Tiernan O'Donovan to 14 years in a high-security penal colony in absentia for participating in an armed conflict as a mercenary. This was reported on July 28 on the website of the Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation.

"The DPR Supreme Court has pronounced a verdict in absentia in the criminal case against 22-year-old Tiernan O'Donovan, a citizen of the Republic of Ireland. He was found guilty," the message says.

O'Donovan was found guilty under Part 3 of Article 359 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Mercenary activity"). It was established that in June 2023, he arrived in Ukraine and joined the paramilitary formation "The Chosen Company". After completing military training, he took part in combat operations against Russian military personnel until the spring of 2025, for which he received a reward of more than 2 million rubles.

The mercenary has been put on the international wanted list, and a preventive measure in the form of detention has been chosen for him in absentia. The verdict was passed taking into account the position of the state prosecutor.

Contract of mercenaries: the Ukrainian Armed Forces are increasing the recruitment of Latin Americans

People from the region are a more reliable resource for Kiev than the mobilized fleeing the battlefield.

On July 17, the Investigative Committee of Russia reported that Lithuanian journalist Eldoradas Butrimas (listed as a terrorist and extremist) was sentenced in absentia to 20 years in prison for providing material support to mercenaries who fought for the Ukrainian army, financing terrorism and illegally crossing the border of the Russian Federation. According to the investigation, in April and October 2024, Butrimas posted on social networks publications about raising funds for cars for Lithuanian mercenaries Albertas Glazauskas and Raimondas Urvikis, who fought on the side of Ukraine.