Zim arrests Russia recruiters, struggles to repatriate deceased

For months, one Zimbabwean family has endured a painful wait after their relative, recruited to fight for Russia against Ukraine, lay dead in a Moscow morgue. However, every attempt to bring him home was met with bureaucratic runarounds in Harare, office to office, with no official willing to say when repatriation might happen.

The family submitted documents, wrote letters and spoke to officials in both Zimbabwe and Russia, yet they still do not know when, or even whether, their loved one will be brought home.

Their experience has come to symbolise Zimbabwe’s response to the trafficking of its citizens into Russia’s war against Ukraine: swift in arresting suspected recruiters, but slow and disjointed when it comes to rescuing survivors and supporting bereaved families.

The contrast is striking because Zimbabwe has demonstrated it can investigate and arrest people accused of recruiting Zimbabweans into Russia’s war.

However, Zimbabwe is yet to demonstrate that it has a coordinated system for repatriating survivors or helping families bring home their dead relatives.

Nearly four months after the government pledged to assist Zimbabweans caught up in the conflict, families continue to describe a confusing and fragmented process characterised by bureaucratic delays, poor communication and uncertainty over which government institution is responsible for coordinating repatriation.

Earlier this year, CITE exposed how Zimbabweans were allegedly lured to Russia with promises of lucrative civilian jobs, only to find themselves deployed to the front lines of the war in Ukraine.

This follow-up investigation examines what happened after the Zimbabwean government acknowledged the trafficking allegations, asking whether its response has extended beyond arrests to providing meaningful assistance to victims and their families.

From warning to arrests

Zimbabwe’s official response gathered momentum soon after reports of the recruitment network emerged.

On 11 March 2026, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade warned Zimbabweans against deceptive overseas recruitment schemes linked to Russia.

Five days later, on 16 March 2026 government spokesperson Nick Mangwana publicly classified the recruitment of Zimbabweans into the conflict as human trafficking, marking the government’s first formal policy position on the issue.

By 25 March 2026, Information Minister Zhemu Soda announced that 15 Zimbabweans had died in connection with the recruitment schemes, while 66 survivors remained in Russia. Within a week, the government revised the reported death toll to 18.

At the same time, authorities acknowledged that documentation challenges meant only four Zimbabweans could initially be repatriated.

However, CITE’s investigation suggests the true death toll could be higher. Multiple sources and published investigations indicate that Russian authorities have been accused of systematically underreporting the deaths of foreign recruits, with some casualties allegedly recorded as missing rather than confirmed dead.

While repatriation efforts advanced slowly, criminal investigations moved at a markedly faster pace.

Between late March and early July 2026, Zimbabwean authorities arrested at least eight people allegedly linked to recruitment networks operating across Zimbabwe, South Africa and Russia. The arrests represent the government’s most visible response to the crisis, signalling a willingness by law enforcement to pursue both Zimbabwean and Russian suspects accused of involvement in the trafficking network.

Building the criminal cases

The first major breakthrough in dismantling the alleged Russian recruitment network came in March 2026, when four Harare men, Obert Hlavati, Tonderai Maphosa, Tanaka Malcolm Gwarada and Edson Dudzayi Nyamudeza, appeared before Harare magistrate Jesse Kufa facing human trafficking charges.

According to prosecutors, the four allegedly worked with a Russian national identified only as Ivan to recruit Zimbabweans through Facebook, Telegram and WhatsApp. Victims were allegedly enticed with promises of lucrative firefighting jobs in Russia, only to be drawn into the country’s war against Ukraine.

Prosecutors further allege Gwarada received about US$8 167 through EcoCash and a bureau de change as payment linked to the recruitment of six Zimbabweans.

The investigations widened in May 2026 with the arrest of Sofia Leonova, a 20-year-old Russian national accused of recruiting Zimbabweans with promises of truck-driving jobs in Russia. She faces two counts of human trafficking and operating an unregistered employment agency. Prosecutors allege she worked with five Russian accomplices, identified only as Victor, Marshy, Sam, Phillip and Michael, who remain at large.

In June 2026, investigators recorded another breakthrough when Leonid Koftov was arrested at Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport while allegedly attempting to leave Zimbabwe with a recruit. Unlike the earlier cases, police intercepted the alleged victim before he left the country, suggesting law enforcement had begun disrupting recruitment networks before victims crossed international borders.

Later that month, police arrested Edward Kachingwe, 36, who is accused of recruiting young Zimbabweans to join the Russian military.

The latest publicly known arrest came in early July 2026, when Oscar Sifelani Mtshiya, 48, of Hwange, appeared in court facing five counts of human trafficking after allegedly sending five Zimbabweans to Russia under the guise of offering lucrative firefighting jobs.

Mtshiya was remanded to 18 August 2026 as he said he is looking for a Russian interpreter.

These cases reveal a consistent pattern: the recruiters targeted economically vulnerable Zimbabweans, particularly unemployed young people and former members of the security services, before connecting them with Russian handlers operating under aliases such as Ivan, Roman, Curious, Victor and Denis.

In several instances, investigations were triggered by distressed relatives after recruits contacted their families from Russia or disappeared altogether.

In at least one case, intelligence gathered from those reports enabled police to intercept a recruit at the airport before departure.

Collectively, the prosecutions represent one of Zimbabwe’s clearest institutional responses to the crisis as these suspects face trafficking charges against, which signal a willingness to pursue transnational recruitment networks through the criminal justice system.

Yet the arrests tell only one side of the story.

While police appear to have developed an increasingly effective strategy for identifying and disrupting recruitment networks, families searching for missing relatives, or trying to bring home the bodies of those killed, describe a far less coordinated response.

Families have spoken about prolonged delays, fragmented communication, shifting responsibilities between government departments and an absence of a clear system to support victims.

A body in Moscow: One family’s search for answers

For one Zimbabwean family, the ordeal did not end with their relative’s death in Russia. It marked the beginning of months of uncertainty, bureaucratic delays and unanswered questions as they sought help from Zimbabwean authorities and the Russian embassy.

The family first learnt of the death through Facebook. Friends later confirmed the news, although they said those who knew had initially been reluctant to tell them.

Desperate for answers, the family contacted the Russian embassy before approaching Zimbabwean authorities. They were told their relative was among three Zimbabwean bodies held in a Moscow morgue.

The family formally wrote to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who stamped the letter and forwarded it to Zimbabwe’s embassy in Moscow.

The response presented them with two painful choices: bury their relative in Russia or have the body cremated and the ashes returned to Zimbabwe.

The family wanted to bring their loved one home for a traditional burial but they could not afford the estimated cost of repatriation, about US$16 000.

Faced with that reality, the family reluctantly accepted that burial in Russia might become the only practical option.

However, Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs indicated it wanted to assist in repatriating the remains.

What followed, the family says, was a confusing and prolonged process involving multiple government departments, repeated requests for documents and long periods with little or no communication.

“The embassy in Moscow told us the deceased was still there waiting for the Zimbabwean government,” a family member said.

Officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs reportedly informed the family that Russian authorities had provided quotations for transporting the body from Moscow to Zimbabwe via Dubai.

The family was advised Zimbabwe’s Department of Social Development (formerly welfare) would have to determine whether the government could fund the repatriation.

The family was instructed to travel to Harare to complete further paperwork, including signing power of attorney documents to facilitate financial arrangements in Moscow.

Then the waiting began.

Weeks passed with little progress while more documents were requested and more forms had to be completed but no clear timelines were provided.

As the weeks moved, the uncertainty only deepened.

According to the family, Russian officials later told them they could no longer keep the remains indefinitely.

“The Russians are complaining that they have kept the bodies for too long, so they are burying the deceased,” they were told.

The family asked Russian authorities to communicate that decision formally to Zimbabwean officials.

Throughout the process, the family said they complied with every request. They submitted beneficiaries’ identification documents, signed power of attorney forms and provided additional paperwork whenever asked.

At one stage, Russian embassy officials in Harare reportedly requested power of attorney documents, only to later say they could not recall whether they had received them, despite indicating earlier that an embassy official would travel with the documents to Russia.

The family’s most recent communication with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs offered little reassurance, as officials reportedly said they were still waiting for the Ministry of Finance to release funds before the repatriation process could begin.

The family’s anguish has only deepened.

“We will not give up. We continue praying. We can’t lose a person and then lose the benefits as well,” a relative said.

“They told us that once Treasury releases the money, then the repatriation process will start.”

Family 2: “I just want my child home” – A mother waits in Beitbridge

For Tanaka Muzirikazi’s mother, every phone call now carries equal measures of hope and dread. She still waits for the call that will finally tell her when she can bring her son home.

The 23-year-old from Harare died while fighting on the front line. Weeks later, his mother, who lives in Beitbridge, says she is still waiting for Zimbabwean authorities to tell her what will happen next.

“Nothing is moving. I was told by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs that they would call me to come and sign documents, but nothing has happened to date. I called the Zimbabwean ambassador in Russia, who said they had seen my son’s remains but were waiting for the Zimbabwean government to decide on the way forward,” she said to CITE.

“I can’t do anything without an update from them. This is painful. We just need help to bring my child home.”

The mother said she “never knew” her son intended to travel to Russia.

Instead, she discovered he had left after her sister urged her to check his WhatsApp status.

“My sister told me to look at his WhatsApp status. He was already on a plane.”

Unknown to her, Tanaka had hidden his WhatsApp status from her. It was only after he arrived in Russia, did he admit and told her within two weeks he would start sending money home via a contact in Harare.

Soon afterwards, she was contacted by a man in Harare whom she believes was connected to the recruitment network. Initially afraid to meet him, she eventually agreed.

According to the mother, the man handed her US$6 000, saying it had been sent by her son. She was told the original amount was US$8 000, with the balance allegedly deducted as transfer charges. The explanation, she said, only deepened her suspicions.

Then communication with Tanaka soon became irregular.

After nearly two weeks without hearing from him, she contacted the Harare intermediary, who was using a South African phone number.

He gave her the contact details of another man in Russia.

The man in Russia, claimed he worked with Tanaka and assured her he was safe. He even claimed her son had bought a car that would soon be shipped to Zimbabwe.

She did not believe him.

“I told him I don’t care about the car. I just want to talk to my child.”

Less than an hour later, she began receiving calls from different Russian telephone numbers.

At first, the callers told her Tanaka had been seriously injured and was receiving treatment in intensive care.

However, she immediately sensed they were concealing the truth and minutes later, they confirmed her worst fears.

Her son had died.

“He was struck by a drone. He was injured on his chin, his hand was broken and he had injuries to his leg. He died in hospital.”

The calls ended and her search for help began.

She first approached Zimbabwe’s immigration authorities, who referred her to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Officials there instructed her to write a formal letter requesting assistance with the repatriation of her son’s remains.

She did and weeks later, she is still waiting for a response.

Her anguish has been compounded by uncertainty over another relative who travelled to Russia with Tanaka.

“My child left with my aunt’s son. He too went offline about a month after arriving there. We don’t know whether he is alive or dead.”

She believes many young Zimbabweans leave without telling their families because recruiters insist on secrecy.

“If only my child had told me, I would have begged him not to go. But our children are sent there in secret. This is painful.”

The sequence of calls she received, from different Russian numbers, each providing conflicting information about her son’s condition, left her questioning who she was really speaking to.

She believes some callers may have been connected to the recruitment network or may have been impersonating officials.

CITE could not independently verify the identities of those who made the calls.

More families still searching for answers 

The experiences of these two families are not isolated. Other desperate families have continued to come forward seeking help to trace relatives who disappeared after travelling to Russia. They have said they do not know where to begin, while others have exhausted every available avenue without receiving definitive answers about whether their loved ones are alive or dead.

On 4 July 2026, Nomasonto Ndlela contacted CITE asking for assistance to locate the father of her two children, Vusixhiba Keswa. She said the last time they spoke was on 18 January, when he told her he was “going on mission” and shared his military number. Since then, she has received no further communication and has been searching for information about his whereabouts.

On the same day, Mirriam Nkomazana also appealed to CITE for help to trace a missing relative who had travelled to Russia.

Another family member, Saveto Reza, said he was looking for his brother, Shepherd Moyo, who left South Africa in December 2025 before travelling to Russia. Reza said the family last spoke to him during the first week of January 2026 and has not heard from him since.

A week later, on 11 July 2026, one Ashley also reached out to CITE in search of her father, Richard Nabati. She said they last spoke on 21 June 2026, when he told her he was being deployed to the front line. According to Ashley, he was using the name “Gofaz” while in Russia.

Recruits speak: Survivors still waiting to come home

While some Zimbabwean families wait for the bodies of loved ones, dozens of recruits remain stranded in Russia, uncertain whether they will ever make it home.

Several Zimbabweans who spoke to CITE from Russia described mounting casualties, deteriorating conditions and a growing sense of desperation as the war dragged on.

One survivor made a direct appeal for help.

“We need help to come back home. The way we left home is not what we found. Our brothers are dying, others are injured and have lost their arms and legs. We need to come back,” he said.

“One of us is related to a senator in Bulawayo, but I don’t know whether that will help. We just want to come home.”

Another recruit, speaking from a hospital after being wounded, said his injury was the only reason he escaped the front line.

“Luckily, I was injured in the leg and taken to hospital. Many have been injured and others died before me. I am fortunate that my injury got me away from the fighting. I have heard that some people have managed to return home. I am also looking for a way back, but I don’t know how they are coming home.”

Their accounts show that they are in a difficult spot, they are in an active war zone, cut off from their families and struggling to find a way home.

For many, surviving the battlefield has become only the first hurdle while returning home has proved equally uncertain.

Botswana’s government recently underscored those challenges when it renewed its warning to citizens against falling victim to deceptive recruitment schemes linked to Russia.

In a statement issued on 18 July 2026, Botswana said that once recruits arrive in Russia, its ability to provide consular assistance becomes “extremely limited,” with few realistic options for returning home.

“Lives of those involved are placed in grave danger every day,” the Botswana government said, revealing its Ministry of International Relations continues to receive distress calls from Batswana already deployed in Russia, describing the perilous conditions they face.

Why Zimbabweans continue to go

Despite growing publicity surrounding deaths, injuries and human trafficking investigations, the flow of Zimbabweans into Russia has not stopped.

Interviews conducted during this investigation suggest the recruitment networks remain active, with new recruits continuing to leave for Russia, often via South Africa.

There, worsening economic hardship and rising anti-immigrant sentiment appear to be leaving some Zimbabweans increasingly vulnerable to deceptive promises of lucrative employment abroad.

Information obtained by CITE indicates that 14 Zimbabweans based in South Africa reportedly arrived in Moscow on 18 July 2026.

All are understood to have travelled from South Africa rather than directly from Zimbabwe, meaning the recruitment networks appear to have adapted, continuing to operate across the region.

Several sources familiar with the recruitment routes told CITE that Zimbabwe’s prolonged economic crisis remains the primary driver of the exodus.

However, they said worsening conditions for Zimbabwean migrants in South Africa, including increasing anti-immigrant rhetoric and hostility, are pushing some to view Russia as an alternative destination, despite the well-publicised risks.

For many unemployed young people, overseas employment continues to be seen as one of the few remaining opportunities to earn an income and support their families, making them particularly susceptible to such recruitment.
Some interviewees also alleged that corrupt officials at airports outside Zimbabwe facilitate the movement of recruits in exchange for bribes.

CITE could not independently verify these allegations, and the relevant authorities have not publicly responded to them.

Why Africans are vulnerable

Development practitioner Tatenda Unika Kombora believes Zimbabwe’s experience is part of a much broader pattern unfolding across the continent, with economic hardship creating fertile ground for deceptive recruitment networks.

Kombora said poverty remains the single biggest factor driving people to accept offers that might otherwise appear too good to be true.

“When you look at the people targeted, there are specific vulnerabilities. Poverty is one of them. You cannot easily convince someone who already has a well-paying job and is satisfied with their life to relocate to Russia,” she said.

She said the salaries advertised by recruiters should themselves raise alarm bells.

“When you consider the amounts people are promised, they appear unrealistic. You then ask yourself, how desperate must someone be to look at those figures and genuinely believe they are true? That tells you something about the circumstances and desperation of those accepting these offers.”

Kombora also pointed to the speed with which many recruits leave their home countries as another warning sign.

“Most of these recruitment processes happen very quickly. Within a week, two weeks, or at most a month, the person is gone,” she said, contrasting that with legitimate migration channels.

“Zimbabwe experienced a mass exodus to the United Kingdom and other European countries. Anyone who has gone through those immigration processes, or knows someone who has, understands that obtaining a visa takes time. Yet here we have a process that is heavily fast-tracked, where applicants are told to keep everything secret, and people still believe it is legitimate enough to travel thousands of kilometres from home. That demonstrates the level of desperation they are facing.”

Kombora argued the exploitation of Africans in foreign wars is not a new phenomenon, as they have long been drawn into “European wars.”

She noted that during both the First and Second World Wars, millions of Africans were recruited, often through colonial rule or coercion, to fight or provide logistical support for European powers.

In her view, today’s recruitment into Russia’s war reflects a modern version of that historical pattern, driven not by colonial domination but by poverty, unemployment and limited economic opportunities.

For that reason, she said, the response cannot be left to individual governments acting alone.

“African governments should begin speaking with one voice. Rather than isolated responses from individual countries, we should see coordinated engagement,” Kombora said.

She also questioned why regional bodies have remained largely absent from the debate.

“Unfortunately, Africa’s regional institutions have been weakened. SADC and the African Union have not exercised the collective influence needed to address this issue effectively.”

Why Zimbabwe’s response is politically complicated

Zimbabwe’s response to the recruitment of its citizens into Russia’s war is shaped not only by law but also by its longstanding diplomatic relationship with Moscow.

Although Zimbabwe criminalises mercenary activity, its Suppression of Foreign and International Terrorism Act creates an important exception.

The law permits Zimbabwean citizens to provide private military services to countries with which Zimbabwe maintains diplomatic relations.

Legal experts told CITE this provision may help explain why authorities have concentrated on prosecuting alleged trafficking and deceptive recruitment rather than the act of serving in the Russian military itself.

The issue, analysts argue, extends beyond legal interpretation because Zimbabwe maintains close diplomatic, military and economic ties with Russia.

These ties have become an important strategic ally as Harare seeks political support and investment amid years of Western sanctions.

Against that backdrop, publicly accusing Moscow of facilitating the trafficking of Zimbabwean citizens could place those relations under strain.

That political sensitivity may help explain the government’s measured public response, even as it has pursued criminal cases against alleged recruiters operating within Zimbabwe.

Behind closed doors: Questions mount over Zimbabwe’s Russia response 

In June 2026, Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda, State Security Minister Lovemore Matuke and other government officials reportedly travelled to Russia, although the purpose of the visit and the outcome of any discussions have not been made public.

When contacted by CITE, Matuke said he was not familiar with the matter, adding that he would look into it before referring questions to the Ministry of Defence.

The Zimbabwe Republic Police did not respond to questions submitted for this investigation despite follow-up requests.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade also did not respond to repeated requests for comment by the time of publication.

The absence of public explanations from the institutions leading Zimbabwe’s response has left many of the questions raised by affected families unanswered, including which ministry is ultimately responsible for coordinating the repatriation of survivors and the remains of those who died.

Other African Governments have taken different approaches

Governments across the continent have adopted different responses to recruitment of its citizens into Russia’s war in Ukraine, ranging from diplomatic engagement to efforts to secure the return of affected nationals.

In March 2026, Kenya announced it had engaged directly with the Russian government following reports that more than 1 000 Kenyans had been recruited into the Russian military. Foreign Minister Musalia Mudavadi said Russia had agreed that Kenyan citizens would no longer be enlisted through the Russian Ministry of Defence and that future consular matters would be addressed through established diplomatic channels.

South Africa has also managed to repatriate some of its citizens who were recruited into the conflict, although concerns remain over the scale of recruitment and the fate of those still in Russia.

The Botswana government said although it continued to explore every possible avenue to assist and repatriate its citizens, prevention remained the strongest safeguard.

“While the Government continues to explore all possible avenues to assist and bring them home, citizens must understand that prevention is the most effective safeguard.”

A February 2026 report by Swiss investigative organisation INPACT found that more than 1,400 Africans from 35 countries had signed contracts with the Russian military between January 2023 and September 2025. The report estimated that more than 300 had died within months of arriving on the battlefield.

Writing in February 2026, Atlantic Council researcher Katherine Spencer warned that Russia was likely to intensify recruitment efforts in Africa as battlefield losses mounted and domestic mobilisation became increasingly politically difficult.

Reports circulating in early January 2026 also suggested that Russia had introduced a recruitment “stop list” covering 36 countries, including Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana and Ethiopia. Zimbabwe was reportedly not included among the countries on the list.

Questions that still need answers

Despite arrests and ongoing investigations, several critical questions remain unanswered:

• How many Zimbabweans remain in Russia today?
• How many have successfully returned home?
• How many bodies of deceased recruits remain in Russian custody?
• Which government ministry is responsible for coordinating repatriation efforts?
• Has the Treasury allocated funding to support the return of affected citizens?
• What progress has been made in prosecuting alleged recruiters and traffickers?
• What long-term support is available for survivors and families who have lost loved ones?

These questions go beyond individual cases and test whether Zimbabwe’s anti-trafficking framework is equipped to protect citizens after they have crossed international borders and become victims of transnational recruitment networks.

The unfinished response 

Zimbabwe has demonstrated that it can identify recruitment networks, arrest suspects and pursue criminal cases against alleged traffickers. However, for families whose relatives remain stranded in Russia, or those waiting for the return of loved ones who died there, the government response remains incomplete.

The system appears to weaken at the point where victims require the most support, safe repatriation, assistance for survivors and meaningful help for bereaved families.

Until those stranded abroad are brought home, affected families receive sustained support and authorities establish a clear, coordinated mechanism for assisting victims, Zimbabwe’s response will continue to be measured not only by the arrests it has made, but also by the people still waiting for help.

The gap between effective criminal enforcement and an uncertain, poorly coordinated repatriation process has emerged as the central finding of this investigation.