A foreign fighter who told his wife he’d return “in a few days” has died in an ambush in Ukraine.
Bruno de Paula Carvalho Fernandes died in an ambush on the front line on Monday afternoon (1 Sept).
The 29-year-old father had been serving as a volunteer soldier since the end of May.
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In one of his final voice note messages home, he said: “This isn’t goodbye, not at all. It’s just a message to say that in a few days I’ll be back.
“God is with us.”
Before the war, Bruno worked as a nursing associate at a hospital in Governador Valadares, in the southwest of São Paulo, Brazil.
His wife, Cecília Fernandes, said he had already been seriously wounded weeks earlier.
He’d been shot several times – including once in the head – and admitted to intensive care.
Despite not being fully recovered, Bruno was sent back to the front line just hours before his death.
“He couldn’t say no; he was being forced to go,” Cecília said.
She believes he was lured through social media, where he found groups offering foreign recruits up to R$30,000 (£4,100) a month, along with accommodation, food, and transport.
Bruno even sold his car to cover some of the initial costs, as reported by Need To Know.
It is unclear exactly how he died.
His mother, Bethania Paula da Silva Guede, told local media: “They said he was hit by a drone on Russian soil while trying to rescue someone.”
Another of his comrades told Cecília: “He was shot in the head and legs, bled heavily, and died bleeding.”
Another Brazilian in the same unit with two Ukrainians survived but remains in serious condition in the hospital.
Bruno, originally from Barra do São Francisco in Espírito Santo state, had been living with Cecília in Governador Valadares for four years.
He leaves behind a five-year-old son and a six-year-old stepdaughter, who regarded him as their father.
Although fascinated by conflicts, his family never believed he would actually go to Ukraine.
He told most relatives nothing, only informing Cecília the day before he left – promising to return within three months.
Bethania said: “At first, he said he was going to save lives in Ukraine, but from the start, we could see he was in combat and hadn’t gone to work as a nursing associate.”
His body has not yet been recovered, as he was killed in a remote area.
A fellow fighter paid tribute: “He was an incredible man, always cheerful. He died doing what he loved – fighting.”
More than 1,200 foreign volunteers are believed to have been killed in Ukraine so far.
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