34-year-old Daniel Martindale is said by Russian sources to have been in Ukraine since 11 February 2022 and proactively contacted Russian security forces when he arrived. He sent them the coordinates of Ukrainian military facilities, helping them to carry out airstrikes.

He is said, in particular, to have "played a key role in preparing the assault on the village of Bohoiavlenka [north of Vuledar] in late October." The Russians captured the village on 27 October and were filmed raising their flag there.

Martindale communicated using a phone delivered by a Russian drone. He was extracted from the war zone on 27 October 2024 and brought to Donetsk, where he was photographed alongside armed men (presumably the squad that carried out the extraction).