A former Air National Guardsman who fled to Russia amid criminal charges of possessing child pornography appears to now be serving in the Russian military as a drone operator -- but he denies betraying the U.S., according to videos released Monday by Russia's Ministry of Defence.
Wilmer Puello-Mota, 28, a former security forces technical sergeant with the Massachusetts Air National Guard, fled the U.S. at the beginning of the year and appeared in videos and social media posts in April claiming that he was intent on joining Putin's army after already having helped fight in a key city in eastern Ukraine.
Puello-Mota's flight to Russia occurred as a legal case for possession of child pornography that began in 2020 wound its way through the Rhode Island court system and, according to local outlets, was at a plea deal.
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In a video released on the instant-messaging service Telegram by the Ministry of Defence, a man adorned in military camouflage and armor, complete with a Russian flag on his chest, told viewers, "I'm Will. I'm from Massachusetts, Boston," before adding that he goes by the call sign "Boston."
In the video, Puello-Mota says that he served for 10 years in the Air Force before joining the Air National Guard and that his job was "air base defense ... it's military police, security forces."
"We deal with things like drones and other things. ... I've definitely been able to apply some of those skills, leadership skills as well here," he added.
Both the Air Force and Air National Guard confirmed that Puello-Mota served, but his combined years of service on active duty and the Guard appear to fall short of 10 years.
The Air Force's records show that Puello-Mota joined in June 2013 and left active duty six years later in 2019 as a security forces staff sergeant. Air National Guard officials previously confirmed to Military.com that Puello-Mota went on to become a technical sergeant with the Massachusetts Air National Guard but that he was separated in October 2022 following his criminal charges.
Air Force records show that Puello-Mota did deploy to Afghanistan once and earned two Air Force Achievement medals.
Don Veitch, a spokesperson for the 104th Fighter Wing in Massachusetts, told Military.com in an email in April that "criminal activity is not compatible with our values as an organization and will not be tolerated in our ranks."
According to the Russian defense ministry, Puello-Mota is now a reconnaissance drone operator; he himself said he is part of the 137th Brigade.
Puello-Mota made no mention of his outstanding legal charges or the fact that his travel to Moscow in January took state officials by surprise.
According to court documents provided to Military.com by the office of the Rhode Island attorney general, Puello-Mota boarded a flight Jan. 7, two days before he was supposed to be in court regarding his charges, and flew from Dulles International Airport in Virginia for Turkey.
In Monday's video, he said that he arrived in Russia in January and "spent some time in Moscow" before serving in an international brigade in the Ukrainian province of Donetsk for three months.
According to The Boston Globe, Puello-Mota and his lawyer reached a deal to plead guilty to his charges in exchange for an 18-month prison sentence.
"The state has received photos and videos purporting to be the defendant in Russia and Ukraine, where he is alleged to have joined the Russian military," Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha wrote in a court document earlier this year.
"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."
Puello-Mota said that he doesn't consider himself a traitor and instead used a commonly cited Russian talking point that "the United States has done things that are very provocative, very bad."
"It's been involved in other people's politics, other nations' interests, and should not be doing that," he argued.
Puello-Mota was praised by his Russian commander in a separate video as having passion for his work and being a very good pilot who approaches his work professionally.
Likewise, the onetime Guardsman praises his Russian comrades by saying that "they help me to navigate all the complexities and the cultural differences."
"I couldn't have picked a better group of people to be here with. I love these guys."
Editor's note: This story has been updated to include service details provided by the Air Force.
Related: Former Air National Guardsman Facing Child Porn Charges May Have Defected to Russian Military
