Five Brits who were captured and tortured by Russian forces could be in line for financial compensation from Ukraine authorities.
The men, who were released and returned to the UK two weeks ago after months in detention, have been told they may be eligible for a payout from the Kyiv government.
One said they could be entitled to around £2,400 each after they told of being tasered and beaten by Putin’s henchmen.
Dylan Healy, 22, a former chef from Eastbourne, East Sussex, explained: “There’s been talks that we might be able to claim compensation from Ukraine.
“I’m not quite sure on the actual terms but I believe it would be because we went out there to help Ukraine and obviously got captured because of it.
“I’m assuming it would be along the lines of the injuries we sustained.
“Ukraine very much doesn’t forget. The first thing they said to us [when we were freed] was, ‘Look, if you ever need anything just speak to us and we’ll see what we can do.’”
One fellow captive, Andrew Hill, 36, who was shot in the arm, is in the process of applying, Dylan said.
Since they returning to the UK as part of a prisoner exchange, Dylan has exchanged texts with scaffolder Andrew, from Plymouth. He hopes to reunite with Aiden Aslin, John Harding and Shaun Pinner.
Last week, the Sunday Mirror revealed Dylan had met the daughters of his former cellmate, Briton Paul Urey, 45, who died while being held captive in Ukraine.
The diabetic father of four’s body was repatriated to the UK for a postmortem after his daughters Chelsea, 21, and Courtney Coman, 17, raised £10,000 to cover costs.
Dylan said: “The body has been or is just about to be released to the family. I’ll be going to Paul’s funeral, which is sometime soon.
“His family have been really supportive and we are in a lot of contact."