A British politician and former ally of Nigel Farage was sentenced Friday to more than 10 years in prison for accepting bribes to make pro-Russia statements in the European Parliament.

Nathan Gill, 52, pleaded guilty earlier this year to eight counts of bribery. Police said he took around 40,000 pounds ($53,000) in payments between December 2018 and July 2019.

Prosecutors said Gill, who served in the European Parliament until the U.K. left the European Union in 2020, was instructed by Ukrainian politician Oleg Voloshyn to make statements supporting Russia on events in Ukraine. He also published opinion pieces in outlets like 112 Ukraine.

Russia annexed Crimea in 2014 and launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. The U.K. has been a major supporter of Ukraine since the invasion.

At London’s Old Bailey, Justice Bobbie Cheema-Grubb said Gill had allowed money to “corrupt his moral compass” and had failed in his duty to act with honesty as an elected official.

Gill was stopped at Manchester Airport in September 2021 while trying to travel to Russia and was formally charged in February 2025. Investigators found messages on his phone showing financial dealings with Voloshyn and efforts to influence other European Parliament members to support Russia.

Gill was first elected to the European Parliament in 2014 for the U.K. Independence Party, later representing the Brexit Party, and led the Welsh branch of Reform U.K. in 2021.

Gill’s sentencing has prompted calls for wider investigations into Russian interference in British politics. Reform U.K. described his actions as “reprehensible, treasonous and unforgivable,” while Farage called him a “bad apple” and said such cases can happen in any party.

Voloshyn, linked to Ukrainian media outlets, is believed to be in Russia and is wanted by authorities in both Britain and Ukraine.