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A former leader of Reform UK in Wales has been sentenced to 10 and a half years in prison for accepting bribes from an alleged Russian asset to make pro-Kremlin statements while serving as a member of the European Parliament.
Nathan Gill, 52, pleaded guilty in September to eight counts of bribery between December 2018 and July 2019, during which police believe he received at least £30,000 from Oleg Voloshyn, a former Ukrainian parliamentarian now thought to be in Moscow. Investigators say the actual sum may have been significantly higher.
The case has sparked immediate political fallout for Reform UK, with Defence Minister Al Carns calling on party leader Nigel Farage to launch a comprehensive investigation into potential Russian connections within the organization. Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, described Gill as "a traitor at the very top of Reform UK."
Gill, who represented Wales for the UK Independence Party and later the Brexit Party in the European Parliament, made scripted statements both in parliamentary sessions and on 112 Ukraine, a pro-Russian television channel linked to Viktor Medvedchuk, a Ukrainian ally of Vladimir Putin. The channel was subsequently banned from broadcasting in Ukraine.
WhatsApp messages recovered after Gill was stopped at Manchester Airport in September 2021 revealed coded language about payments, with early references to "xmas presents" and "gifts" eventually giving way to explicit financial discussions. Metropolitan Police Commander Dominic Murphy told reporters the collaboration became a "regular habit," with Voloshyn making comments such as "I'll get you 5k."
Sentencing Gill at the Old Bailey, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said he had betrayed the public's trust. "When you say what someone has paid you to say, you are not speaking with sincerity," the judge said. "Allowing money to corrupt your moral compass constitutes a grave betrayal of the trust vested in you by the electorate."
The judge noted that Gill had "advanced narratives advantageous to Russian interests concerning Ukraine" during a period of considerable turmoil that preceded Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Prosecutors revealed that Gill enlisted other members of the European Parliament to make statements and media appearances, receiving €5,000 for arranging interviews with three MEPs on the pro-Russian channel. The Crown Prosecution Service identified these as William Dartmouth, Steven Woolfe, and German MEP Arne Gericke, though the judge emphasized the case was not presented on the basis that these individuals knew about Gill's paid arrangement.
WhatsApp messages released by prosecutors also reference Jonathan Arnott and David Coburn, both former UKIP MEPs who traveled to Ukraine with Gill in October 2018 and made statements in the European Parliament weeks later. Arnott has rejected any suggestion of links to Russia or acting in its interests.
Murphy said several former MEPs had attended voluntary interviews as part of an ongoing investigation, with a joint investigation team now involving police forces from multiple European countries. He described the case as the first of its type encountered by British authorities and said it raised questions about Russian attempts to influence UK politics and society.
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Police say they have not questioned Farage, who led both UKIP and the Brexit Party in the European Parliament, as part of the investigation. The Reform UK leader has described Gill as a "bad apple" who betrayed him. At Friday's sentencing, Gill's defense lawyer Peter Wright stated that Farage "was never the subject of any proposition nor indeed of any agreement" relating to the pro-Russian activities.
A Reform UK spokesperson called Gill's actions "reprehensible, treasonous and unforgivable," adding that the party welcomed the sentence. However, Gill was greeted at the Old Bailey by Ukrainians and British trade unionists chanting "What about Farage?"
The investigation began after the FBI alerted British authorities to evidence obtained when Voloshyn was stopped at Dulles Airport in Washington in July 2021 and his phone was seized. Two months later, Gill was stopped at Manchester Airport, where he told police he was traveling to Russia to act as an observer for elections to the Duma.
Police seized €5,000 in cash and thousands of dollars from Gill's home but say they do not know what he did with the entire amount received. During police interviews, Gill repeatedly answered "no comment" and has offered no explanation for his actions, though investigators believe he was primarily motivated by financial need while also having sympathy with the positions he was paid to espouse.
Voloshyn, who fled Ukraine before the Russian invasion and is wanted in his native country for high treason, sent an emailed response to media after the sentencing saying he was "astonished" by the verdict and found it "totally unfair." Murphy said it was very unlikely authorities would be able to extract Voloshyn from Russia unless he agreed to leave himself.
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