More than 100 Nigerians who travelled to Russia to watch the 2018 World Cup and had the intentions to stay back and look for greener pasture in Moscow, are currently stranded and are seeking ways of coming back home.
The stranded Nigerians have been camping in front of the Nigerian Embassy waiting and hoping for help to be relocated back home.
Two brothers told AFP that they were approached by fellow Nigerians and was told that, if their dreams of soccer stardom do not work out once they get to Russia, they would easily find other well paying jobs in Russia. They also revealed that they paid $300 each for fan's passport (Fan ID) for the World Cup and round trip tickets which they used to travel to Russia.
The FAN IDs contains personal data and functions as a visa substitute during the tournament.
One of the brother's said that they realised that they have been scammed when they arrived Moscow.
"In Nigeria, we were told to call this phone number once in Russia but nobody picked up on the other end," the younger recalled.
They spent three days in a hotel until they ran out of money. They contacted the Nigerian Embassy but were turned away. The younger one recalled that they went to a mosque, they were not allowed to stay overnight but received food from the Imam, then they slept at different times in parks, in Moscow.
"Suddenly, my suitcase was gone," one of them recalls.
They went back to the Nigerian Embassy and were told to contact the Russian NGO Alterniva, which works with victims of human smuggling and enslavement and is solely financed through donations. Fortunately for them, Alternativa was able contact Murat Harsiyev and Danier Tagiev, who run a small hostel on the outskirts of Moscow.
Many Nigerians are currently at the embassy appealing for help to return home.
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