Kenyan authorities have arrested a central figure in a human trafficking network that allegedly sent over 1,000 Kenyans to Russia, where many were forcibly conscripted into the army and deployed to Ukraine.
Festus Omwamba, 33, was apprehended in Moyale, a border town with Ethiopia, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) confirmed on X Wednesday night. He is considered a key player in a large-scale trafficking syndicate.
Omwamba reportedly founded the recruitment agency Global Face Human Resources, which was used to funnel Kenyans to Russia. According to Kenyan MP Kimani Ichung’wah, over 1,000 Kenyans have joined the Russian military in recent months, many after being misled about the nature of their employment.
Several reports indicate that individuals with no prior military experience were promised lucrative civilian jobs but were coerced into signing army contracts and sent to the frontlines in Ukraine, where some have been killed. AFP interviewed four Kenyans—three wounded—who returned home, including one who believed he was going to be a salesman, two expecting security jobs, and a high-level athlete.
All four cited Omwamba’s role in the deception, along with his employee Edward Gituku, who is currently facing prosecution for human trafficking.
The Russian embassy in Kenya has denied the allegations, calling the claims a “dangerous and misleading propaganda campaign.”
