By Abigail Hunt,Will Stewart

Copyright dailystar

Mad Vlad Putin has drafted a Playboy editor to fight in the war against Ukraine , it has been revealed. Vladimir Lyaporov, 48, has been sent to the frontline by the crazed Russian President. The ex-editor-in-chief of the infamous men’s magazine in Russia has signed a contract with the Moscow defence ministry so the allegations against him in a criminal case of embezzlement involving two companies in London are scrapped. He had been accused in pro-Kremlin TV reports of creating a financial pyramid scheme. REN TV channel reports eight people had suffered losses in the alleged £445,000 scam. The court case had been ongoing since August but was aborted after he agreed to fight in the war. Lyaporov was charged with fraud under Part 4 of Article 159 of the Russian Criminal Code, which allows for up to 10 years in prison. But he’s now no longer at risk of being locked up thanks to Putin. According to TASS, a Russian state news agency, authorities had frozen around 30 million rubles (£265k) in Lyaporov’s accounts, and he was under a travel ban. The agency added he admitted guilt in one criminal episode out of five before later retracting his testimony. Putin has recruited both the convicted and accused in Russia for the war in return for dropping their sentences, or charges against them. Lyaporov had been appointed editor of Russia’s Playboy edition in 2007. It comes after Russian hooligans from the same groups that clashed with England fans at Euro 2016 are reportedly involved in Vladimir Putin’s unlawful invasion of Ukraine . These Russian supporters had violent encounters with sections of England fans before and after their 1-1 group stage draw. Football was overshadowed nine years ago when England played Russia in Marseille. Hooligans were blamed for launching brutal, coordinated attacks around the city , resulting in dozens of injuries and one man being left paralysed for life. The chief prosecutor of Marseille alleged that a group of 150 Russians, armed with metal bars and other fighting equipment, were responsible for most of the violence. They were labelled as “hyper-violent.” Reports suggest that some of these hooligans are now on the front lines of Putin’s war against Ukraine. French outlet L’Equipe claims that the same hooligans who attacked English fans are now wielding rifles in Ukraine. They highlight the Espanola, an irregular military formation led by Commander Mikhail Tourkanov, whose body is adorned with swastika tattoos. “The fact that they are football fans, hooligans, I turn that into a huge asset,” he stated. “Because the people who join us come with a certain mindset, after the pitches, after the fights in the cities, in the stadiums, etc. By using that spirit, it becomes explosive.”