From Russia to a Ukrainian prison, will Kamrul ever return home to his family

With hopes of changing his fortune, 38-year-old Kamrul Hasan from Brahmanbaria traveled to Russia after taking a large amount of loan. But his dream turned into a nightmare as he allegedly fell victim to a recruiting scam.

His family claims he was forcibly sent to fight for Russia in the war against Ukraine. They say he was later captured by Ukrainian forces while trying to flee a military camp and is now being held in a prison in Ukraine. Back home, his wife and daughter continue to wait for his return.

Kamrul is from Laurfatehpur village in Nabinagar upazila of Brahmanbaria. His wife, Nazmin Akter and their six-year-old daughter Tayeba Noor live in their village home. Nazmin is now burdened with her husband's debts and remains in deep uncertainty over his well-being.

According to the family, Kamrul returned to Bangladesh last year after working in Singapore for 12 years. He later came across an advertisement for recruitment at a Russian firm. Regarding the opportunity, he contacted Toufayel Ahmed of the MSTC Technical Training Centre in Dhaka’s Uttara, an affiliate of Munia Overseas.

The advertisement promised a job at the Sinopec Engineering and Construction Company in Russia with a monthly salary of US$600 to $700. After signing a contract for Tk 800,000, Kamrul underwent three months of training at the MSTC Technical Training Center. He eventually paid a total of Tk 850,000 across various heads before departing for Russia.

Kamrul arrived in Russia on 17 July, 2025. To fund the trip, the family borrowed Tk 250,000 at interest from a local individual, Tk 100,000 from a relative and another Tk 100,000 from relatives in Dhaka, according to Nazmin Akter.

She told Prothom Alo that the total cost for Kamrul to reach Russia amounted to Tk 850,000.

Najmin explained that after staying in a mountainous region of Russia for five to six months, Kamrul traveled to Moscow in search of work. There, he fell victim to a broker's deception and was forced to spend two nights under the open sky. Later, another broker lured him with the promise of sending him to Italy and swindled him of Tk 500,000.

Through further deception, Kamrul was eventually handed over to the Russian army, where he was forced to sign a one-year contract to fight in the Ukraine war.

The last conversation Nazmin had with her husband over the phone was on 31 March of this year. She recalled that Kamrul had told her he would be ‘missing’ for next six months and asked her to take proper care of their daughter.

When asked about the reason for his disappearance, Kamrul revealed that brokers had coerced him into signing a contract and sent him to the Russian military, where he would be undergoing combat training.

Nazmin added that during a video call, she had seen several other Bangladeshis in military uniforms alongside Russian soldiers. Communication was cut off after that call. She received no news of her husband for nearly a month and a half since then.

During his long absence, many feared Kamrul had died. On 13 May, Nazmin posted a plea for information regarding her husband in a Facebook group named ‘Russia Expatriate.’

On the night of 16 May, a foreigner contacted Nazmin via WhatsApp. Identifying himself as Kurt Pelda, a Swiss journalist, he informed her that Kamrul was alive and being held in a Ukrainian prison. According to the journalist, Kamrul and another Bangladeshi named Suman were apprehended by Ukrainian soldiers while unarmed. He noted that had they been armed, they might have been shot. They were taken into custody instead.

Kurt Pelda told Nazmin that after enduring nearly a month of starvation and torture, Kamrul and his companion had escaped from a Russian military camp. It was during this escape that they were captured by Ukrainian forces.

On the afternoon of 17 May, Nazmin received a WhatsApp video call arranged by a commander at the Ukrainian prison. During the call, she was able to see and speak with her husband. She sensed that the commander was attempting to extract information from her husband through intimidation.

The commander kept insisting that Kamrul had come to fight against Ukraine and kill civilians, Nazmin said. She tried to explain their situation. The commander later informed her that Kamrul possessed no identification or legal documents.

Nazmin added that she had a brief second conversation with Kamrul, during which he told her not to worry and expressed hope that he would be released within three months. Since then, however, Kurt Pelda informed her that Kamrul had been moved to a different location and the involved commander had been transferred. She has had no further contact with her husband.

Overwhelmed with grief, Nazmin told Prothom Alo that her debt, including interest, has now reached Tk 300,000. Creditors are demanding repayment. While she is surviving with help from her parents, she feels insecure living alone. She appealed to the government and relevant authorities to ensure her husband's safe return to the country.

When asked about the allegations, Toufayel Ahmed, a marketing employee at the MSTC Technical Training Center, told Prothom Alo that their institution did not take such a large sum of money. He claimed Kamrul was sent for construction work at Russia's Sinopec company through the ‘Banya Bijoy Overseas-1214’ travel agency.

According to company rules, leaving or fleeing the workplace is prohibited, Toufayel said. He claimed that they are not responsible if someone chooses to flee on their own initiative. He also added that they have no information whatsoever regarding any worker sent through them participating in the war.