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Russian-Installed Donetsk Court Jails Four Soldiers for Killing of American Pro-Kremlin Fighter

Judges issued prison terms ranging from 1.5 to 12 years following guilty pleas in a case led by Russia’s Investigative Committee.

Overview

  • Major Vitaly Vansyatsky and Lieutenant Andrei Iordanov received 12-year sentences, Sergeant Vladislav Agaltsev got 11 years, and Vladimir Bazhin was sentenced to 1.5 years.
  • Vansyatsky, Iordanov, and Agaltsev were stripped of their military ranks, according to the Donetsk Garrison Military Court.
  • Investigators said Bentley was tortured to death on April 8, 2024; a car with his body was then detonated, and his remains were later hidden.
  • The case was tried in Russian-occupied Donetsk by a Russian-installed military court, which announced the verdicts on Dec. 8.
  • Bentley, known as “Texas,” fought with the Vostok battalion, worked as a propagandist including for Sputnik, and had obtained Russian citizenship.