Russia parades Brit prisoner of war on state TV as he faces 30 years in hellhole gulag

James Scott Rhys Anderson appeared to have been coached in what to say as he told the Readovka propaganda outlet his family likely doesn't know he is in Russia

Russia paraded a British prisoner of war on Vladimir Putin’s state-controlled media as he is threatened with up to 30 years in a hellhole penal colony.

James Scott Rhys Anderson, 22, from Banbury, was seen bent double by an armed guard as he was hauled from his detention cell to face interrogation by the despot’s propagandists. He appeared to have been coached in what was acceptable to say as the country as officials also paraded the anonymous Black Sea Marines commander who captured Anderson.

The British man - formerly in the UK army - was held by Russian forces last weekend fighting for Ukraine. He claimed that Ukrainian forces sought to kill him to stop him from falling into Moscow’s hands. He made clear he has been told to expect a jail sentence of between 20 and 30 years when his case comes to court, as his family have expressed fears he could be tortured.

He is accused of terrorism, and of being a mercenary, invading Russia, and committing criminal acts against the civilian population. He said: "I think my future is I spend a lot of time here…in Russia. I'm not sure when I'll ever go home. It could be that if I were lucky, my government would help.

“But truthfully, it's going to be…20 to 30 years I'm going to spend in Russia because I decided it was a good idea to help Ukraine.” He told how he ignored his family when they told him not to return to Ukraine. He told the state-funded Readovka propaganda outlet: "All the time when I'm in my cell, I'm always thinking about how my mum and dad said ‘Don't go back, don't go back’. I wish, I wish I never did.”

He said of his family: “They knew that I was in Ukraine. I don't know if they know where I am now.” He told pro-Putin Izvestia that he was paid $400 US dollars a month (£315) as a mercenary fighting for Ukraine, with $60 a day (£47) when he went on missions. Anderson told state news agency RIA Novosti that it was wrong for Ukraine, backed by the West, to invade Russia’s Kursk region, where he surrendered.

He said: "We shouldn’t be here - the Russians really don’t want us here. They have a lot more weapons, and a lot more manpower. They will do everything to get you out. If you’re lucky, you’re captured, but you’re going to spend 20 or 30 years in a Russian prison, which itself is not nice. So those are your options.

"You're going to be there for a couple of weeks if you do manage to survive the whole time there. It’s not worth it."