A report by Sin Chew Daily said the unnamed relative expressed shock over Lee’s involvement as a mercenary and hoped he could “find his way back home”.

The relative said although they lived under the same roof, they did not know much about his daily activities.

An only child, Lee was studying at a private college in Subang Jaya. Many of his peers were also unaware of his whereabouts.

Inspector-General of Police Razarudin Husain was reported by Bernama yesterday as saying Lee was the sole mercenary in Ukraine from Malaysia.

He said preliminary investigations found that Lee was wounded in the ankle by shrapnel from a Russian drone. He escaped but dropped his MyKad and Malaysian driving licence while doing so.

Several photographs of a MyKad and a Malaysian driving licence with a Perlis address were widely shared online after they were reportedly found on a battlefield in Ukraine when Russian forces captured a base.

Razarudin said Lee became a mercenary in Ukraine in April after applying on the Ukrainian military’s website. Lee went to Britain in March before signing up as a mercenary.

He said Lee was motivated to sign up as a mercenary because of his interest in the military and the attractive salary of up to US$2,700 (RM11,800) a month.

“Family issues also spurred him to distance himself as Lee was brought up by his mother in Perlis after she separated from his father when he was young,” he said.