A US Navy veteran turned pro-Kremlin propagandist, she was a highly decorated maid and winner of a series of prestigious awards, according to DailyMail.com.
The military records of Sarah Bells, a 37-year-old divorced tropical fish saleswoman, show that she earned as many as 11 medals and decorations during her 13 years of service.
They include the highly coveted Global War on Terrorism Service Medal awarded to those who serve directly in counterterrorism operations.
The gong was created by former President George W. Bush to honor those who fought in the War on Terror.
Sarah Biles claimed to be a Russian Jew living in Luhansk and documenting alleged “war crimes” committed by the Ukrainian military.
Beals left the army last year, but after being demoted. No reasons are given in the official records for her demotion.
The documents do not say when the New Jersey native was honored for her service.
These honors are usually reserved for those who serve at least 30 days of consecutive service or 60 days of non-consecutive service in support of counterterrorism operations.
Records also show that she left the army on November 27 last year, but no reasons were given for her departure.
DailyMail.com asked the US Navy to provide more details about Pless’s military service.
She was revealed earlier Monday as the woman behind the ‘Donbas Devushka’, or Donbas Girl, which has amassed more than 100,000 followers online.
Her popular social media account spread pro-Moscow propaganda about the war in Ukraine and even tried to raise money for the Russian cause.
They have been praised by pro-Kremlin military bloggers in Russia, such as the highly influential Rybar Telegram channel.
Biles claimed that in 2014, at the time of the first Russian invasion, she was traveling between the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and eastern Ukraine.
It claimed that the Ukrainian army was killing people in the city of Luhansk, located in the Russian-occupied Donbass region of the country.
On her account on Telegram, a popular messaging service in Russia and Ukraine, she claims to have taken part in a “Russian-style information war”.
It recently brought to light some documents allegedly leaked by US National Guard member Jack Teixeira, who was charged with two felonies on Friday.
She is now being investigated by the Department of Justice as part of an investigation into how the leaked Pentagon documents appeared on the Internet.
Biles, who has security clearance, denied she was involved in helping Teixeira.
“Obviously, I know the gravity of top-secret material,” she was quoted by the Wall Street Journal as saying.
Teixeira, 21, will appear in court on Wednesday as Justice Department investigators continue their investigation into how he accessed such top-secret information.
One of the leaked documents laid out how Ukraine is running low on missiles and requires urgent supplies from Kiev’s western allies.
I have also published under the pseudonyms Mila Medvedev, Luganskforlife, CheburekiVibes, MeatballSubZero, YuGopnik, and GhostofLugansk.
But Bells is actually a former US Navy avionics technician and served on Whitby Island, Washington state.
Her true identity was revealed by volunteers from the North Atlantic Foundation, which raises money for Ukraine and fights disinformation online.
The Ukrainian group managed to unmask Biles thanks to another unusual side hustle they had.
Apart from serving in the navy, she also ran a business selling tropical fish and food imported from Poland.
Biles was featured on a popular podcast about aquariums in June 2020 which proved to be her downfall.
She allowed NAFO to match her voice and home interiors with her publications as Donbas Devushka.
Her Twitter account is now closed, but her YouTube channel where she interviews pro-Kremlin commentators remains online.
