The Russian Embassy in Nairobi has denied that one of its nationals was arrested and deported from Kenya, countering media reports that linked him to an alleged trafficking network recruiting Kenyans to fight in Ukraine.
In a statement Saturday, the embassy identified the man as Mikhail Lyapin and said he was merely taken to the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) in Nairobi to give a statement about his business activities. Afterward, officials said, he left Kenya “in accordance with his previous plans.”
“Diplomats of the Russian Embassy in Nairobi provided the necessary consular and legal assistance … and made sure that his legal rights were not violated,” the mission said. It stressed that Lyapin “has never been an employee of Russian governmental bodies and does not work at the Russian Embassy.”
The rebuttal comes amid widening investigations into a suspected human-trafficking ring uncovered last week. Kenyan police said they rescued 22 people from apartments on the outskirts of Nairobi, seizing travel documents and recruitment materials. Authorities believe the victims had been lured with promises of work in Russia, only to be destined for deployment in the war in Ukraine.
On Friday, a Nairobi court ordered that Edward Kamau Gituku, a Kenyan national accused of orchestrating the scheme, remain in custody for ten days as police pursue leads. Investigators describe him as a key figure in a transnational network funneling recruits to Moscow.
The embassy’s denial underscores the diplomatic sensitivity of the case. Russian officials have rejected any suggestion of state involvement, even as reports from Ukraine describe captured African fighters who say they were misled into joining Moscow’s forces.
For Kenya, the case highlights growing fears that its citizens are being exploited under the guise of foreign job offers — a pattern seen across several African states caught in the shadow of Russia’s war.
