British POW who was tortured with electric shocks, beaten and starved by Putin's troops in five

Release time：2024-05-21 20:31:36 Source：Horizon Herald news portal

A former British soldier who fought alongside Ukrainian troops before being captured and tortured by Russian soldiers has won a court case against the Kremlin. 

London lawyers and Ukrainian lawyers filed a suit to a judge in Solomyanskiy District Court in Kyiv in October, claiming that Russia owes him money for the way he was treated while a prisoner of war. 

Pinner signed up to be a contracted soldier in Ukraine's military in 2018, rising through the ranks after serving with the British Army for nine years, fighting in both Bosnia and later as a volunteer against ISIS.

He was captured by Russian forces during the siege of Mariupol in April 2022.

A 'supreme court' in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic initially sentenced the former soldier and two others to death, but he was later freed in a prisoner swap along with three other UK fighters in a deal brokered by Saudi Arabia - and former Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich. 

Pinner said he was brutally beaten, electrocuted and starved by his captors over five months in captivity - treatment he said infringed his human rights and entitled him to compensation.

The Kyiv court today ruled in his favour, accepting he was inhumanely treated and ruling that the Russian Federation must compensate him accordingly.

Moscow is expected to ignore the ruling, but the case could set a precedent for more POWs to lodge complaints against Russia - and Pinner said he intends to continue pursuing his case in British courts. 

Shaun Pinner (pictured) was a British Army soldier for nine years before he joined Ukraine's army

He was captured by Russian forces during the siege of Mariupol in April 2022

Shaun Pinner tells Good Morning Britain about his ordeal

A 'supreme court' run by the Russian-occupied territory of Donetsk sentenced him to death alongside other Brits, including Aiden Aslin, but he was later released

British citizens Aiden Aslin (L) and Shaun Pinner (R) and Moroccan Saaudun Brahim (C) attend a sentencing hearing at the Supreme Court of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, 09 June 2022 

Shaun told The Sun: 'Russia needs to be held accountable for the way they treated me and this is the first step.

'This now sets a precedent for other victims of Russia's aggression. All the victims of war should and will be able to hold Russia accountable for what they have done.

'When Russia comes back into the real world they are going to have to settle these legal cases... It's not about now, but the future, next year, 10 years, 20 years' time.'

Pinner was later awarded an Order of Courage by officials in Kyiv following his release from Russian captivity.  

Speaking to media last year, Pinner's legal team admitted the Kremlin was almost certain to ignore any court orders for compensation.

But they pointed out that, in the years since the fall of the Soviet Union, Russian oligarchs have routinely used English courts to settle legal disputes in all parts of their lives. 

Cases include commercial disputes and even divorce settlements. 

As a result, Pinner's lawyers say there is a decades-long precedent for Russian judges following orders made by English courts - and the rulings could be meaningful in years to come.

What's more, his case could encourage hundreds more Ukrainian citizens and other foreign fighters alike to pursue similar legal challenges.

Aiden Aslin, one of the other Brits captured in Mariupol who once faced a death sentence, is expected to launch his case against Russia in a Ukrainian court next week.  

Shaun Pinner with wife Larysa 

Aiden Aslin, one of the other Brits captured in Mariupol who once faced a death sentence, is expected to launch his case against Russia in a Ukrainian court next week

Aslin, pictured, was tortured along with Pinner

Pinner said that the lawsuit is about more than just money: 'It's not just about financial compensation. 

'I want to send a signal that the Russian state is culpable for its treatment of prisoners of war.

Last year he revealed how badly he was hurt by his Russian captors, claiming his 'muscles were popping out of [his] body' and blood poured from his legs after his captors attached clips to him before running 200 volts of electricity through his body, leaving him unable to walk.

He recalled how Russian soldiers drove him 45 minutes to a wet room in an office, tied him up, stabbed him, cut off his clothes and beat him while calling him a Nazi and ignoring his pleas of innocence.

There, he endured several 'excruciating' shocks that caused his legs to inflate. When he took off his thermals, he found he was bleeding from the damage to his body.

'I was screaming,' he said. 

'And then I had 200 volts go through me on the chair. I couldn't feel my leg anymore.

'As soon as I got there they sellotaped my hands and legs to the chair and then I felt the clips go on to my little fingers... and then I knew exactly what that was.'

Related articles