Exclusive: Russell Bentley, Colorado Guy when you look at the Russian Army, Says He is ‘Liberating’ Ukraine

Living among the many expert-Russian competitors consuming the newest Donbas area for Ukraine was an old Western soldier, Colorado native Russell Bentley.

Given the codename “Texas” just after joining the brand new , Bentley went widespread earlier this week having sharing video footage out-of himself into the “the leading line” having Russian troops marching from Donbas.

Immediately after he caught the interest men and women on the internet, Newsweek only talked in order to Bentley about how precisely a guy out of Austin-a self-proclaimed former “surfer, seashore boy-types of man”-finished up traveling to help you Ukraine to join and you can struggle with the latest Donetsk Man’s Republic (DPR).

Bentley’s go Ukraine

For the February, the country looked towards the as Russian forces become surrounding this new border off Ukraine. To own days Russian authorities got refuted intends to consume, however, Bentley while others in the DPR know what was upcoming.

“It wasn’t a surprise in my experience. It was a surprise to many idiots you to definitely believe on their own, you know, geopolitical experts on the West,” Bentley informed Newsweek. “1 month in the past people were ridiculing me having claiming: ‘Hey, you know what? This time they imply company.'”

Bentley, a self-proclaimed communist, earliest set base during the Donetsk on the , but their coming during the Ukraine is actually lengthy upcoming.

He was created to your good “wealthy, really higher-middle-classification family members” for the Highland Playground, Dallas, Colorado, a beneficial “very elitist” city, predicated on Bentley. While the an earlier people he supported from the You.S. Armed forces, paying several years based in Germany and you will traveling “extensively” across European countries.

He was a beneficial demolition professional and you will handle engineer before are provided a keen honorable launch. From there, then he resided towards Southern area Padre Isle, Colorado, where their family unit members had a restaurant. He invested eight many years in the city because a “surfer, beach boy-style of people” prior to transferring to Minneapolis, in which the guy developed a desire for government.

He was associated with marches and you will protests from the very first and you will next Gulf of mexico Wars, and claims to was a supporter to possess immigration liberties, ladies’ rights and gay rights.

He turned into even more upset that have America’s international guidelines and you can turned “disgusted and you may aggravated” of the NATO’s 2011 intervention during the Libya. He put towards action as he did not should feel a beneficial “punk” and simply “share how bad it actually was with the Myspace.”

Inside 2014 in the Odessa, Ukraine, dozens of individuals were murdered throughout a conflict anywhere between specialist- and you will anti-Euromaiden demonstrators. Seeing video footage of on the web, Bentley said: “Guess what, I am probably head to Ukraine, and you may I’m going to kill the Nazis you to definitely did so it, and you may I’ll safeguard anybody, simple civilians.”

Russia keeps rationalized its promotion up against Ukraine from the stating they have been assaulting neo-Nazis, and it also is designed to “denazify” the nation. Yet not, all those historians has closed an open page condemning Russia’s actions and you may rhetoric. Laura Kockusch, a professor from Holocaust studies at the Brandeis College or university within the Massachusetts, advised NPR the vocabulary falls under “a good fictional which is used because of the Putin in order to validate their battle away from aggression toward Ukraine.”

Proceeded his journey throughout the You.S. in order to Ukraine, Bentley told you: “I’d a fantastic job, I experienced an effective girlfriend, I experienced a good life. I found myself safe. I produced a beneficial thousand dollars a week cash, talking-to anybody just like the a salesperson. My girlfriend try a yoga instructor twenty years young than just myself, uncle. Zero crap.”

Bentley packaged his handbags, rode their bike to Dallas and had a final Thanksgiving that have their members of the family. The guy ended up selling their motorcycle and you will got into an airplane to Moscow.

Assaulting Ukrainians towards the side line

Take a trip out of Rostov to Donetsk, Bentley met a friend he’d been in touching having, a journalist revealing on the town. Seven days later, https://kissbrides.com/greek-women/rhodes/ he inserted this new military with the Vostok Battalion, a good Russian militant category functioning in the Donbas area.