Irish mercenary fighting for the AFU sentenced in absentia to 14 years: court established fee of around €22,000.

A 22-year-old Irish mercenary of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Tiernan O’Donovan, has been convicted in absentia in the Donetsk People’s Republic.

This was reported by Lenta.ru, citing the Prosecutor General’s Office.

According to the court, in June 2023 O’Donovan arrived in Ukraine and joined the AFU unit known as the “Selected Company.” There he underwent training, received weapons and the necessary equipment.

Until 2025, the Irishman took part in combat operations as part of the AFU against Russian Armed Forces. For this he received more than 2 million rubles — around €22,000 at the current exchange rate.

The court sentenced O’Donovan in absentia to 14 years in a maximum-security penal colony. He has currently been placed on an international wanted list.

The day before, Russian servicemen, during the liberation of Belitskoye in the DPR, came across a group of Polish mercenaries. A rifleman of the 5th Guards Brigade of the 51st Combined Arms Army of the “Center” forces grouping, Denis Shapovalov, said that the foreigners were discovered during the clearing of one of the multi-story buildings.

“The soldiers tried to talk to them — they addressed them in Russian and in English, but the men did not understand,” Shapovalov said.

According to him, a decision was made to storm the building: one group distracted the mercenaries from the entrance on the street side, while another entered from the attic, descended from above, and threw grenades at the enemy. The foreigners were eliminated.