Russia Paying Ex-KDF Sh2 Million to Fight in Ukraine

Kenya’s ex-soldiers are being shipped to the Russian frontline for cash, in a shadowy recruitment racket that has roped in hundreds and left some dead, injured, or captured in Ukraine.

The deal: Sh2 million lump sum on arrival in Moscow, plus monthly salaries of up to Sh300,000. The catch: a one-way ticket to the bloodiest war of the decade.

DCI last week arrested Russian national Mikhail Lyapin, accused of being the kingpin of the Nairobi recruitment ring.

But the Russian Embassy washed its hands, saying Lyapin had “never been an employee” and had left Kenya after “routine questioning.”

At the same time, police raided a safe house in Athi River, where 21 Kenyans were being processed for deployment.

Some of the 21 Kenyans who were found at the Great Wall Apartments in Athi River were waiting to be processed to travel to Russia. (Photo: DCI)

Travel papers, contracts and recruitment materials were seized, and Edward Gituku—the man at the centre of the storm was dragged to court.

In a stunning defence, lawyers Danstan Omari and Cliff Ombeta declared their client’s firm had a “valid contract with the Russian government” to recruit only former KDF officers.

Omari claimed more than 1,000 Kenyans had already been sent to Russia, joining a reported 27,000 ex-soldiers from across Africa.

The revelations come as the Foreign Affairs ministry confirmed rescuing three Kenyans—Shaquille Wambo, Pius Mwika and Derick Njaga from the war zone.

Others remain stranded, some as prisoners of war.

The racket exploded into the open after Kenyan runner Evans Kibet was captured by Ukrainian forces, while Tanzanian Nemes Tarimo was killed fighting for Russia in 2022.

Nairobi is now caught in the crossfire: a foreign power accused of raiding Kenya’s military ranks, an embassy in denial, and hundreds of ex-KDF lured by war money into a conflict with no return guarantee.