Former Holyoke City Councilor Wilmer Puello-Mota has reportedly defected to Russia and is now living in Moscow, where he works for the Russian Defense Ministry, according to his Facebook profile.
The Facebook page of "Will Puello," now features a photo of the Kremlin in the Russian capital and a picture of Puello-Mota in full military gear while operating a drone.
The former city councilor, who ran unopposed in November 2021 and took office in 2022, was arrested in September 2020 in Warwick, Rhode Island, and charged with possession of child pornography. The 17-year-old victim said that Puello-Mota, who was 24 at the time, had sent her money via Venmo for sexually explicit photos though he knew she was underage.
The former city councilor was scheduled to appear in court on January 9, 2024, but two days earlier, he boarded a flight to Istanbul, Turkey. In a March court filing, the Rhode Island Attorney General acknowledged that Puello Mota had either fled the country and joined the Russian military or invented the story to evade the case against him.
In April 2024, Russian media and milbloggers shared photos and videos allegedly showing Puello-Mota signing a contract with the Russian Defense Ministry and claiming the American took part in the Russian takeover of Avdiivka in Eastern Ukraine. Court documents say the Rhode Island Attorney General has received photos and a video of the former National Guard member in both Russia and Ukraine.
"While the State cannot verify the authenticity of the videos and photographs, if they are accurate the Defendant is well beyond the jurisdiction of this Court and, if false, the Defendant is engaged in an elaborate ruse to conceal his whereabouts," the Rhode Island Attorney General said.
Puello-Mota could have faced a minimum sentence of five years in prison if he had gone to trial and had been found guilty, NECN wrote, but this sentence could have increased due to his fugitive status.
The former city councilor was also facing additional charges of forgery, counterfeiting and obstruction of the judicial system for forging email documents to deceive Rhode Island authorities and his commanding officers at the Barnes Air National Guard Base.
Agentstvo, an independent news project from Russian journalist Roman Badanin, wrote on Telegram that Russian media outlets were reporting that Puello-Mota, a "former American military man," defected to Russia and signed a contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense. According to reports, Puello-Mota has already allegedly fought as a volunteer in Avdiivka, Ukraine.
Puello-Mota, called "Vil," signed a contract with the Ministry of Defense at the Center of Patriots of Russia in Khanty-Mansiysk, Agentstvo wrote, "according to a video that has already been published in the channels "Voenkor Kotenok", "Ostashko! Important" and "Yugra Z Officially".
The same video, allegedly showing Puello-Mota, was also shared by the pro-government publication URA.RU. Russian blogger Yuri Kotenok claimed that Puello-Mota was paid "745,000 rubles immediately and 150,000 every two months" for joining the Russian military.
Update, 4/4/2024 7:30 a.m. ET: This breaking news story was updated to include more background information.
Correction, 4/5/2024 4:15 a.m. ET: The article incorrectly said that Puello-Mota represented Holyoke's District 2 at the time of his arrest. He was elected in November 2021.
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Giulia Carbonaro is a Newsweek Reporter based in London, U.K. Her focus is on U.S. and European politics, global affairs ... Read more
