Bankoli Machi, a Nigerian auto mechanic, has shed light on how he was allegedly lured by a recruitment tactic into fighting for Russia in the war against Ukraine.
Machi, who spoke after he was captured by Ukrainian troops, said he and others began their journey to Russia with a desperate search for financial stability, but met a different fate.
He said he was allegedly lured into fighting for Russia after he was promised a lucrative construction job in Moscow with a monthly salary worth N500,000.
He said he signed a contract he could not read, only to find himself transported to a military training camp.
Machi, who had spent years working as an auto mechanic in Nigeria, was struggling to make ends meet when he received an offer that seemed too good to be true.
He alleged that the recruitment scheme, disguised as a legitimate “employment agency,” targeted his financial vulnerabilities and that he was told he would be working on infrastructure projects far from the conflict zones.
“I came to Russia to work,” he said. “I did not know that I was coming to join soldier.”
Machi added that he travelled from Nigeria to Moscow via Ethiopia, telling his family he was leaving to earn money to support them and eventually start a business back home.
On arrival in Moscow, Machi said he was taken to what he later realised were military camps. There, he encountered other foreign nationals, including recruits from Brazil, China, Ghana, Uganda, and Nigeria. Communication was limited, with many relying on phone translation apps to understand orders.
He said recruits were given uniforms and trained to use rifles, grenades, and landmine detection techniques. Training included night movement using phone navigation and lessons on handling AK-style weapons.
“At the camp, once you enter, there is no going back,” he said.
After being moved through several camps, Machi said his group was eventually taken at night into wooded areas near the front line. He only realised he had crossed into Ukrainian territory when he recognised the colours of the Ukrainian flag on clothing and buildings.
Machi, who was speaking to the Ukrainian Third Army Corps said he was issued a Russian flag and instructed to raise it at a designated point to signal his unit’s position, though he said the mission was never properly explained in a language he understood.
“I told my friend, this is Ukraine,” he said. “Before I knew it, I was shot.”
Machi was hit in the leg and lost consciousness. He said he saw wounded men lying on the ground during the advance and believed he was about to die. He was later captured by Ukrainian forces after surrendering.
He said Ukrainian soldiers removed the bullet from his leg and provided food and water.
“I was not expecting the way they treated me,” he said. “They helped me. They gave me food. I’m alive.”
Asked whether he believed he had been deliberately used, Machi said yes.
“This is what I will call use,” he said. “I came to work, not to fight.”
He said he would never return to Russia and urged others considering overseas work offers to verify contracts carefully.
“Know what you are coming for,” he said. “If it is work, make sure it is work. If it is war, know it is war. Don’t just sign what you don’t understand.”
The accounts of Machi followed the decision of several African Presidents to launch an investigation into reports claiming that over 1,400 citizens from across the continent have been reportedly lured into fighting for Russia against Ukraine.
The allegations were first made by Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andriy Sabiha.
Sabiha alleged that Russia was enticing Africans to sign contracts that he described as “equivalent to a death sentence.”
Since the development, the South African government, the Kenyan government, and the Togolese government have opened an investigation into the allegations.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian government is yet to officially react to the allegations as of press time.
