DHAKA – At least 30 Bangladeshis were trafficked to Russia with the promise of high-paying jobs and forced to join the Russian military, only to be sent to the front lines of the Russian invasion of Ukraine after just 21 days of training, the Special Response Battalion (SRB), formerly known as RAB, said today.
Around 20 of them have died, the battalion added.
Addressing a press conference at the SRB Media Centre in Dhaka’s Karwan Bazar, SRB-10 Commander Additional DIG Md Asaduzzaman said two people, including the alleged mastermind of the trafficking ring, Mizanur Rahman, had been arrested. The other arrestee was identified as Abu Taher Lentu.
According to the SRB, the syndicate sent the victims to Russia on the pretext of providing jobs in construction companies before handing them over to the Russian military.
The 30 Bangladeshis went to Russia on May 7 this year through three entities: Jabal-e-Noor, RS International, and TS Group. Each victim paid an average of around Tk 10 lakh after being promised well-paid construction jobs.
However, after arriving in Russia, they were denied the promised employment and handed over to the military. They were then deployed to the battlefield following only 21 days of training, the SRB said.
“Those taken from Bangladesh were not qualified for combat. They had no physical preparation, military training or tactical skills for warfare.
“Investigators believe the Bangladeshis were deployed as bait to draw out enemy positions. When opposing forces launched drone strikes against them, the attacks helped reveal enemy positions,” Asaduzzaman said.
Seventeen reportedly died in drone strikes on the first day, while three more died afterwards.
Of the 10 survivors, two injured men have returned to Bangladesh, while two others are being treated at a hospital in Moscow. The remaining six are still on the battlefield, according to the SRB.
Asaduzzaman said one of the returnees, identified as Rajon, fractured his waist or lower back and was paralysed waist-down following a drone strike. Rajon dragged himself on his chest for nearly four kilometres to reach a camp.
Asaduzzaman said most of the victims came from impoverished families. Some of them took enormous loans to finance their journeys. Many families have received news of their relatives’ deaths but have been unable to see their bodies or bring them home.
He said investigators have also gathered preliminary evidence that people from several other countries were recruited through similar methods to fight in the war.
The victims were recruited from Gopalganj, Mymensingh, Narayanganj, Jamalpur, Pabna, Chapainawabganj, Faridpur, Rajbari, and Gazipur.
Besides the Bangladeshi members of the ring, a Russian man and a Kyrgyzstani woman were involved in the operation, the SRB said.
The battalion is gathering information about the two foreign suspects and conducting drives to arrest another local member of the syndicate.
ANN/The Daily Star