British authorities confirmed they are aware of reports of the death of 33-year-old Bradley Townsend. According to The Yorkshire Post, BBC News, and The Guardian, he was killed in a drone attack near the town of Lyman in Donetsk Oblast on June 10.
Townsend left home in early 2026, telling his family he was going to Romania. In early April, he appeared in a video on a Russian pro-war Telegram channel alongside two other Britons, Ben Stimson and Aiden Minnis, who had previously been granted Russian citizenship for fighting on Russia's side.
In the video, Townsend called himself "an ordinary working-class guy" and said he came with the thought that he probably would not be able to return home because he would be prosecuted. He explained his decision to fight as a desire to thank Russia for Donbas miners supporting striking miners from Yorkshire in the 1980s.
One of Townsend's former friends said he suffered from mental health issues and addictions. According to him, other people exploited Townsend's vulnerabilities to "recruit him into their strange affairs." Townsend himself claimed the decision to go to war was his own.
Ben Stimson, who met Townsend in Russia, said he and Minnis tried to dissuade him from going to the front. "We both told him about the realities of the special military operation and the dangers. Later I told Bradley he could still use his return ticket. Bradley was adamant, he wanted to go and fight," Stimson wrote on Telegram.
The UK Foreign Office reminded that traveling to Ukraine to take part in hostilities could be considered a violation of British law. "Upon return to the UK, you may be prosecuted," the statement said. The department confirmed it is in contact with Townsend's family.
Townsend is the second Yorkshire native to die in this war: in 2024, the death of 18-year-old James Wilton, who fought for Ukraine, was reported. All previously killed Britons in Ukraine had fought on Kyiv's side.