Hyderabad youth duped into joining Wagner Group dies in warzone

Hyderabad: Thirty-year-old Mohammed Asfan, a resident of Bazarghat who was among a group of 20 Indian youths inducted into the Wagner Group private army to fight for Russia in its war against Ukraine in the guise of a job offer as a mall security, was reportedly killed in a warzone on the Russia-Ukraine border.

It was previously reported that Indians have been duped by agents since November 2023 and sent to war zones at Mariupol, Kharkiv and Donetsk in Ukraine. Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi had also written to the Union external affairs minister, S. Jaishankar, to contact the Indian Embassy in Russia and repatriate all such victims.

The Indian Mission in Russia said that an Indian national died in Russia and authorities are making efforts to send his mortal remains back home. The Indian Embassy in Russia identified the deceased as Mohammed Asfan, but did not provide any details on the circumstances of his death.

“We have learnt about the tragic death of an Indian national Shri Mohammed Asfan. We are in touch with the family and Russian authorities. Mission will make efforts to send his mortal remains to India,” the embassy said in a post on X.

Mohammed Imran, Asfan’s brother, said he received a call from an official claiming to be from the Indian Embassy there, informing him of Asfan’s death at the border. Imran is currently in Russia to search for his brother and other victims trapped in the zone. Before leaving for Russia, Imran sent a link to family members of all such victims and promised to update the status after meeting with Indian Embassy officials.

Asfan is survived by his wife and two children.

Sources, meanwhile, said that following the death of Azad Younus a couple of weeks ago — the incident that brought the fraud into light — seven other Indians who were entrapped had died in the war.