One of two British volunteers missing in Ukraine has been found dead, says Russia's Wagner Group

British volunteers Chris Parry, 28, and Andrew Bagshaw, 48, disappeared in Ukraine last week, with Russian group Wagner claiming to have found the one of their bodies and the two sets of travel documents

Chris Parry and Andrew Bagshaw disappeared in Ukraine last week

The leader of a group of Russian mercenary soldiers says his forces have found the body of one of two British volunteers missing in Ukraine.

Chris Parry, 28, and Andrew Bagshaw, 48, went missing last week. A spokesman for Wagner Group founder Yevgeny Prigozhin said at least one of them died.

The couple were last seen on Friday morning leaving Kramatorsk for Soledar in eastern Donetsk, where there is believed to be heavy fighting.

It is not known which missing man the group is referring to.

The Wagner Group is considered the "private army" of Russian President Vladimir Putin and is said to have around 8,000 soldiers.

In the press service of Prigozhin's Telegram group, a message around 7:30 p.m. today read: "On January 8, the Ask Wagner hotline received a request to find two British citizens who disappeared on January 6 in Soledar - Andrew Bagshaw and Christopher Parry.

"Today the body of one of them was found, documents on the two Britons were found with him."

Chris was conducting evacuations in the war-torn country when he went missing (

Picture:

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They also shared photos of what appear to be the two men's passports.

It is unclear what the military situation is in Soledar, with Russian forces claiming it fell to them but no confirmation from the Ukrainian government.

The city lies northeast of Bakhmut, which has seen one of the worst city wars of the invasion so far.

A few hours earlier, another message from the Telegram group said: "Once again I want to confirm the complete liberation and clearing of the territory of Soledar from units of the Ukrainian army.

"The civilians were withdrawn, the fighters of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, who did not want to surrender, were destroyed. About 500 people were killed. The whole city is littered with the corpses of Ukrainian soldiers.

"We can't talk about any humanitarian corridor. Let's start demining."