A 36-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly recruiting young Zimbabwean men to fight for the Russian army in its war against Ukraine.
Edward Kachingwe was not asked to plead when he appeared before Harare magistrate Jesse Kufa on Monday.
He is facing charges of trafficking in persons and running an unregistered employment agency.
Kufa refused to hear his bail application, saying he should instead approach the High Court because of the seriousness of the allegations.
According to the National Prosecuting Authority, Kachingwe worked with a Russian accomplice known only as “Roman”, who is still on the run, to recruit Zimbabweans for deployment to the Russian military.
The NPA alleges Kachingwe and Roman “then started to unlawfully recruit victims to join the Russian army where they will be forced to fight in the armed conflict between the Russian Federation and Ukrainian Forces.”
The NPA said investigators received intelligence that Kachingwe had recruited five young men before arresting him.
He was allegedly stopped at Harare’s Roadport Bus Terminus on 27 June while escorting one of the recruits to board a bus to South Africa, described by prosecutors as the first leg of the journey to Russia.
Detectives allegedly found electronic travel tickets, Russian e-visas and hotel booking reservations for the recruits in Kachingwe’s possession.
More: ZimLive
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