Pozhiyoor man brought back from Russian army found dead in lodge
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: A 23-year-old Pozhiyoor native, who was brought back from Russia in March 2024 after being trafficked to the Ukraine war front by a fake job racket, was found dead in a lodge at Neyyattinkara on Thursday. The deceased has been identified as David Muthappan. His family had reported him missing since Wednesday evening, the police said.
David reached Neyyattinkara on Wednesday evening for receiving the money from the agent, who had facilitated his Russian sojourn. The youth was offered a job of a security officer in a super market in Russia and was charged Rs three lakh by the agent.
Sources said since his return, David was in a depressed state. After being contacted repeatedly, the agent had agreed to pay back the amount he took from David. However, despite waiting at the pre-determined spot, the agent did not turn up. Initial suspicion is that David could have ended his life after the agent failed to pay him back.
David was sent to Russia by an agent after promising him a highly-paid job of a security officer in a super market. He along with two other relatives later found out that they were cheated by the agent and were in fact drafted to serve Russian army in its fight against Ukraine.
David was sent to the war front after taking a month-long training in assault weapons. However, he sustained severe injuries in the front and had to be hospitalised. From the hospital he escaped with the help of a Russian soldier and took refuge in a a church. As David could not manage things any more, he contacted his family and informed them of his ordeal.
Acting on the concerns raised by his family members, the central government got in touch with the Russian government and facilitated his return.
The travel documents of David were taken by his recruiters in Moscow, but the Indian Embassy there made arrangements and transported him to Delhi. The CBI had earlier raided the offices of a few recruiting firms, who were allegedly involved in human trafficking to Russia, and named three Keralites, who were working as recruitment agents, as accused.