Two Colombian nationals were sentenced to 13 years in prison by a court in Russian-occupied Donetsk. They were captured while traveling home through Venezuela after completing military service with Ukraine’s armed forces.
The men, Alexander Ante and José Aron Medina Aranda, were detained in Caracas on July 18, 2024. They were still wearing Ukrainian uniforms at the time of their capture, according to the Russian-backed prosecutor’s office.
Russia’s FSB security service confirmed their transfer into Russian custody in a video released on August 30, 2024. The court convicted them for participating in hostilities on the side of Ukraine’s armed forces.