Bangladesh Police Arrest Two in Trafficking Ring That Sent Men to Fight—and Die—for Russia

Authorities in Bangladesh have detained two men accused of operating a trafficking network that duped impoverished citizens into traveling to Russia, where they were allegedly conscripted into the military and used as battlefield decoys, according to police officials.

The suspects, identified as Mizanur Rahman and Abu Taher, were arrested after an investigation into the disappearances of dozens of Bangladeshi nationals who had been promised lucrative jobs abroad, said Mohammad Asaduzzaman, commander of the elite Special Response Battalion. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Asaduzzaman said the pair trafficked at least 30 people to Russia with false promises of high-paying employment.

The case has cast a harsh spotlight on the shadowy international recruitment networks that have funneled foreign nationals into the nearly five-year-old war in Ukraine. According to Bangladeshi police, the victims were drawn from poor backgrounds and paid roughly $8,000 each for what they believed were legitimate job placements—only to find themselves stripped of their documents and handed over to the Russian military.

Once the recruits arrived in Russia, their passports and mobile phones were confiscated, and they were transferred directly to military units, Asaduzzaman said. He added that a survivor who managed to return home after being injured provided police with key details about the operation and the fate of his fellow countrymen.

The human toll has been devastating. Seventeen of the trafficked Bangladeshis, who reached Russia in early May, were killed on their very first day of deployment after receiving only minimal training, according to police. In total, 20 Bangladeshi nationals have been confirmed dead, Asaduzzaman said.

Describing the tactics used on the front lines, the police commander said the foreign recruits were deliberately placed in exposed positions to draw enemy fire. "Bangladeshis were used as bait to locate enemy positions," he said. "Russian forces determined their next course of action after the Bangladeshis fell victim to drone attacks."

Beyond the confirmed deaths, two injured survivors are currently receiving treatment in a Moscow hospital, while six others remain unaccounted for on the battlefield, according to police accounts based on testimony from the wounded returnee. The discrepancy between the dead and the missing underscores the difficulty families face in determining the fate of relatives who vanished after leaving Bangladesh.

The arrests in Bangladesh mark one of the most concrete law enforcement actions taken against a trafficking pipeline that rights organizations say has operated with relative impunity across multiple continents. Bangladeshi media reported that the victims came from economically distressed communities where the promise of overseas work—and the prospect of sending money home—proved impossible to resist.

The tragedy in Bangladesh is part of a much larger pattern. Both Russia and Ukraine have recruited thousands of foreign nationals into their ranks since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine four and a half years ago. An estimated 28,000 foreigners from 136 countries are believed to be serving in the Russian army, while officials say Moscow deployed some 14,000 North Korean troops to counter Ukraine's 2024 incursion into the Kursk region.

Ukraine, for its part, says 16,000 foreign nationals from more than 70 countries are currently serving in its armed forces, with nearly 40 percent of those recruits hailing from Latin American nations. The reliance on foreign fighters by both sides reflects the grinding attrition of a conflict that has consumed enormous numbers of troops and stretched domestic mobilization systems.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy used his address to the United Nations General Assembly last month to warn that Russia is deceptively recruiting people from 47 countries for what he called an "absolutely brutal" campaign. He urged governments around the world not to allow Moscow to "drag" their citizens into the war.

Amnesty International has leveled similar accusations, saying Russia has employed "deceptive, coercive and exploitative practices" to recruit foreigners to fight on the Ukrainian front. The rights group has said it cannot conduct parallel inquiries into foreigners serving in Ukraine's army because it lacks access to prisoners of war held in Russia, which designates Amnesty as a "foreign agent."

Russia has previously dismissed accusations that it coerces foreigners into joining its military. The Kremlin has not commented publicly on the specific allegations involving the Bangladeshi recruits.

The Bangladesh case raises uncomfortable questions about how traffickers were able to operate for months without detection. Recruitment networks often exploit gaps in labor migration oversight, using social media and word-of-mouth to target vulnerable workers in South Asia, Africa and Latin America. Victims are frequently told they will perform non-combat roles, such as security or logistics work, only to be thrust into front-line combat.

For the families of the dead and missing, the arrests may offer little consolation. The confirmed deaths of 20 Bangladeshis—and the continued uncertainty surrounding six others—highlight the dangers faced by migrants who become pawns in a geopolitical conflict far from home. As investigators continue to unravel the trafficking operation, the case serves as a stark warning about the predatory networks that profit from desperation and the global reach of a war that has already reshaped international migration patterns.