Former British member of the European Parliament and former leader of Reform UK in Wales Nathan Gill has pleaded guilty to charges of bribery received from Russia, "Reuters" reported.
Gill appeared at London's "Old Bailey" and pleaded guilty to eight counts of bribery, with the payments made between December 2018 and July 2019. However, the 52-year-old denied a further charge of conspiring to bribe former Ukrainian politician Oleg Voloshyn.
According to Judge Bobby Chiema-Grub, the defendant admitted that he was paid to ask questions and make statements in the European Parliament that were "in support of a certain narrative" that was "beneficial to Russia in relation to events in Ukraine".
Prosecutor Mark Heywood said the bribery charges related to WhatsApp messages extracted from Gill's phone when it was seized by police in 2021. He said the messages showed Gill agreed to receive money in exchange for certain activities, such as asking questions for consideration in parliament, making contact with senior officials, organising events and making statements.
Nathan Gill became a UKIP MEP in 2014 and has led the party in Wales since 2016.
He left UKIP in 2018 and joined the Brexit Party, the predecessor to Reform UK, the following year. Gill remained a MEP until the UK left the European Union in 2020.
Gill was released on bail pending sentencing in November, but was warned by Judge Cheema-Grub that he faced a "significant custodial sentence".