Another video of a Russian defector being executed with a sledgehammer has been doing rounds on the internet. 

What Happened: A video showing the execution of a former Russian mercenary of the Wagner mercenary group, who was trying to flee Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine, was shared on Telegram on Monday.

The unverified video, published by a Telegram channel linked to the Wagner Group, showed a man who identified himself as Dmitry Yakushchenko. He said he was born in Crimea and left prison before joining Wagner.

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“I was planning on finding some loophole, just, as they say, to run away,” Yakushchenko said, adding that it was “not his war” and wanted to escape.

The Telegram handle Grey Zone said Yakushchenko was later captured in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro.”After which, like his colleague Yevgenny Nuzhin, he fell ill with the same disease that makes you faint in Ukrainian cities… and then wake up in the basement at your last court hearing,” Grey Zone said – referring to the November sledgehammer execution of another mercenary.

In the footage, Yakushchenko’s head can be seen taped to a block on a brick wall and soon after, an unidentified man dressed in camouflage standing behind him carrying a sledgehammer appears to swing it into his head. Soon after, the video is blurred and a loud noise can be heard, with Yakushchenko collapsing to the floor.

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