"I will kill you, no one will find you." In Russia, a native of Uzbekistan is suspected of recruiting women into slavery

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In the Russian city of Surgut, a scandal has erupted around a native of Uzbekistan with dwarfism, who previously worked as a street sweeper. The man is suspected of building a scheme to lure female migrants from Central Asia into slavery under the guise of helping them with employment.

According to volunteers from the "Travli Net" (No Bullying) foundation and the Baza Telegram channel, for several years he may have been meeting women through social networks using other people's photos. He posed as a migration service officer and promised his compatriots official work and housing. However, after arriving in Russia, the victims' documents were taken away, effectively depriving them of their freedom.

One of the victims was a 36-year-old native of Samarkand. According to her, she arrived in Surgut back in 2016, having trusted an online acquaintance. In the end, the man locked her in an apartment, took her passport, and pocketed her entire salary, which she earned working as a cleaner. For several years, he kept her in fear, blackmailed her with intimate photos, and constantly threatened her with violence. As the woman said, the perpetrator kept a knife under his pillow at all times and told her directly:

"I will kill you now, no one will find you. I am a Russian citizen, they won't do anything to me."

One of her escape attempts ended with a broken arm after she jumped out of a window.

The woman managed to leave Surgut only two years ago — she was helped by a work colleague, who later became her husband and moved her to Tyumen. But even after that, the blackmail and extortion did not stop, and even paying the blackmailer 1.7 thousand dollars did not help.

The victim's husband is trying to bring the blackmailer to justice, but the Russian police have not yet acted on the complaint. The department reported that they had questioned all participants in the conflict and found no confirmation of the woman's words, adding that she had not previously contacted law enforcement agencies, which is why the initiation of a criminal case was denied.

"Police officers questioned all participants in the incident. No confirmation of what the young woman is publishing was found," the police reported.

Notably, during questioning by law enforcement officers, the man himself admitted that he had indeed threatened the woman and posted her nude photos online. However, law enforcement officers saw no corpus delicti in his actions and also refused to initiate a criminal case, citing the lack of timely complaints from the victim.

, that in July, the representative office of the Migration Agency of Uzbekistan in Moscow provided social, legal, and practical assistance to hundreds of migrant workers. Compatriots were helped to return to their homeland, recover unpaid wages, obtain documents, or find new jobs.