Russia opens criminal investigation into US citizen Ryan O'Leary over alleged role in Ukraine’s Kursk Region operation
Date
12/29/2024 3:13:42 AM
(MENAFN) Russia’s Investigative Committee has launched a criminal investigation into US citizen Ryan O’Leary for his alleged involvement in Ukraine’s military operation in the Kursk Region.
The Ukrainian incursion, which began in early August, targeted internationally recognized Russian territory in an attempt to divert Russian forces from other parts of the front line. Ukrainian officials also suggested that the captured territory could serve as a bargaining chip in future peace talks.
On Friday, the Investigative Committee announced that it had "initiated a criminal case against Ryan O’Leary, a US citizen, suspected in absentia of committing a terrorist act and engaging in mercenary activities." Investigators allege that O’Leary crossed into Russia’s Kursk Region during the August operation.
“The investigation is taking measures to establish O’Leary’s location,” the committee said in a statement.
A Ryan O’Leary was briefly mentioned in a July New York Times article, which reported on alleged war crimes committed by foreign fighters in the Ukrainian military. The article quoted a German battlefield medic who described O’Leary as the de facto commander of the Chosen Company unit and a former US Army National Guardsman from Iowa.
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