An infamous Scottish football hooligan has travelled to Ukraine to join its armed forces in the fight against Russia.
Robert Grady posted a recruitment video wielding an assault rifle alongside his new comrades and pleaded for more volunteers to enlist.
The reformed Hibs casual posted on Facebook yesterday from the frontline, telling followers: “I intend to kill as many as I can.”
The Edinburgh native has a reputation as a notorious hooligan linked to the Easter Road club from the early 1980s.
He was a member of the Hibs casual gang the Capital City Service (CCS) and received a football banning order as recently as 2014 for his involvement in a street brawl after a cup final.
In the 30-second video, Rab - thought to be in Kyiv - dons camouflage body armour and is seen holding the assault weapon following his arrival in Ukraine.
In the video with him are two other armed men, believed to be Ukrainian fighters.
In the video, he says: "My name is Rob. I’m a 61-year-old grandfather from Scotland.
“I’ve travelled to Ukraine to help Ukraine fight the Russians.
“I’ll do anything I can in my power to save Ukraine from Putin.
“Everybody in the world please help Ukraine. They need everybody to help, Volunteers, please.”
Grady has been keeping his Facebook followers updated since arriving in Ukraine.
On Monday, he wrote: “Just to keep you all updated Ukrainian army are shelling Russian position at the moment.
"The ORKS won’t like it.”
When asked about conditions in the thick of the action, he said it was "fine" but would become "bad" upon entering the city.
He then added: “I intend to kill as many as I can.”
When giving background on Grady, a source explained: “Rab was CCS for many years. He was one of the first Hibs boys ever.
"This is going back 40 years.
“This was a time when the casual scene was big and the Hibs boys were involved in large-scale street fighting.
“He’s been watching what was happening in the Ukraine and now he’s travelled out there to fight the Russians.
“He’s not particularly political but he’s found this cause.
“Rab was a ‘frontline’ Hibs casual and really steeped in that world. He’s 61 but a physically capable man. He’s a man who knows how to use his fists, but it will be a different world in Ukraine.
“A lot of people are saying how brave he is for going. I imagine he’s been asked to appear in this video to try and boost recruitment. They need everyone they can get over there.
“There’s a couple of Hearts boys who are also looking into going. There’s casuals in Edinburgh who think it’s a romantic quest, like joining the old International Brigades in Spain or fighting Hitler.”
Grady was one of six men who were banned from football matches for a total of eight-and-a-half years following a brawl before the Ramsdens Cup final match between Rangers and Raith Rovers at Easter Road in 2014.
Grady was handed a one-year football banning order at Edinburgh Sheriff Court over the incident in Edinburgh’s Grassmarket area.
Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon warned against anyone other than trained military personnel travelling to the warzone.
The Foreign Office website said: "If you travel to Ukraine to fight, or to assist others engaged in the conflict, your activities may amount to offences against UK terrorism or other legislation and you could be prosecuted on your return to the UK."
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