Kenyans allegedly trafficked to fight against Ukraine rescued

More than 20 people have been rescued in Kenya from a suspected human trafficking ring that lured them with job offers in Russia but intended to send them to fight in Ukraine, police said. It follows an intelligence-led raid on a residential apartment on the outskirts of the capital, Nairobi, where officers seized recruitment materials, travel documents, and job offer letters, reports BBC News. One suspect, accused of co-ordinating the victims' travel to Russia in September and October, has been arrested. He was taken to court, which allowed him to be detained for 10 days while the police complete their investigations. A young Kenyan athlete was recently captured in Ukraine, saying he was tricked into joining the Russian army. Authorities said last Wednesday's arrest followed a co-ordinated multi-agency security operation targeting the criminal network, which has been extorting huge sums from desperate Kenyan job seekers. Police said the ‘mysterious trafficking syndicate’ was luring Kenyans with job offers in Moscow, only to send them to fight for the Russian military in Ukraine. Detectives said the victims revealed they had signed contracts with an unnamed overseas employment agency, committing to pay up to $18 000 for visas, travel, accommodation and other logistics. A senior Foreign Ministry official recently said the Kenyan Government was following up reports of several Kenyan nationals who had allegedly been trafficked to Russia and were now being held as prisoners of war in Ukraine. Citizens of Somalia, Sierra Leone, Togo, Cuba and Sri Lanka , among others, are currently held in Ukrainian prisoner-of-war camps, said Petro Yatsenko, Ukraine's spokesperson on the treatment of prisoners of war. However, speaking about other prisoners-of-war, he added that ‘most African states show little interest in the return of such citizens and do not wish to take them back’.