Briton Daniel Burke was killed by a ‘comrade’ acting out of ‘cowardice and dishonour, an inquest into his death heard this week after he went missing in August last year
An inquest has heard that a British man who travelled to Ukraine to give medical assistance on the front line was “unlawfully killed” by a “comrade”.
A hearing at Manchester Coroner’s Court heard Daniel Burke, 36, was in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine in August 2023 when he went missing. A “suspect” known to Greater Manchester Police (GMP) led Ukrainian authorities to his body the following month and claimed he had shot him by accident. Suspect Nourine Abdelfetah was not named during the hearing.
Burke, from Manchester, “died with bravery and valour” according to Coroner Zak Golombek. Mr Golombek added that the Briton was “sadly and tragically” killed by “cowardice and dishonour”.
Detective Sergeant Danielle Bullivant told the inquest Mr Burke set up company Dark Angels, a group of military personnel who went to the frontline to evacuate the injured.
The inquest was told Mr Burke had previously travelled to Syria to fight against Islamic State, after being “heavily affected” by events in Manchester in May 2017, when 22 people died in the Manchester Arena bombing. Ms Bullivant confirmed the suspect, who was known by the nickname “Jihadi Adam”, had been working with Mr Burke in Ukraine and they were “comrades”.
On August 11, Mr Burke spoke to his family in the morning and planned to contact them over Facetime later that day, she said. CCTV showed him spending the day with the suspect, and in the late afternoon travelling to an abandoned training ground.
As part of police investigations after Mr Burke went missing the suspect was interviewed and gave separate versions of events, the inquest heard. He led police to Mr Burke’s body and told them he had accidentally killed him during a training exercise.
He claimed he had fired at least two shots – one accidentally while he was carrying Mr Burke in a training exercise and a second for reasons unknown. The court heard a forensic post-mortem found Mr Burke had been shot at least three times – in his head, lower neck and central chest. Ms Bullivant said results of ballistics investigations done in Ukraine suggested it was impossible to accidentally fire the weapon, an AKS74U.
