“I am in Russia, in the army. I didn’t know I would be here. They told me I would be guarding facilities. Please do everything possible so I can return to Peru. Contact the Peruvian embassy here in Russia so they can help me, please,” reported the Peruvian newspaper La República.
Around 120 Peruvian citizens traveled to Russia with job expectations after being promised extremely high salaries. According to the victims’ lawyer, Percy Salinas, they were recruited in Peru by a Colombian organization with the support of Peruvian citizens, after seeing offers on social media to work cooking, cleaning, and guarding worksites.
In Peru, they were made to sign contracts in Russian, and days later they were given their plane tickets. Upon arriving in Russia, their passports, ID cards, and phones were taken away under the excuse: “You owe us $20,000 for the tickets, and this is how you will repay us,” the lawyer explained.
Family members have not had contact with the victims since they arrived, and more than a month has passed. Complaints have been filed with the foreign ministry for “human trafficking.” Some report that since filing complaints they have been threatened, so they have been given police protection.
The foreign ministry issued a statement regarding the situation to locate the Peruvian citizens. According to lawyer Salinas, 8 have died, so their bodies need to be repatriated, and five others are injured and in Russian hospitals.
📄Comunicado de Prensa 012-26: Sobre connacionales que se trasladan al exterior para prestar servicios en las fuerzas armadas rusa y ucraniana.
👉https://t.co/Fg5ztHqTXN pic.twitter.com/YIXxmpUrmZ
— Cancillería Perú🇵🇪 (@CancilleriaPeru) April 23, 2026
Percy Salinas warns people not to give in to job offers of this kind on social media, as they will continue to lure victims with promises of extremely high salaries.