Aleksandr's Story

Aleksandr's Story

Recruitment

Transportation

Info

Info

Info

Info

Info

Exploitation

Escape

Desperation

Trafficked Period

Click on each stage of his timeline from left to right.

Scroll down when you finish reading all sections.

Desperation

Exploitation is more likely to occur when someone is driven to desperation. This is the story of Aleksandr, based on an interview conducted by an NGO working with UNODC. Aleksandr came from a town in Eastern Europe. When he was released from prison and returned home, his wife passed away. He faced ongoing unemployment and serious economic instability. He was looking for any job that would pay him any amount of money. This state of desperation makes people more vulnerable to exploitation.

Transportation

He was transported, unconscious, by car to a distant region far away from his home. When he woke up he found that there were three others in the vehicle who had also been promised work, recruited the same way. One of the NGO representatives working closely with this study explained, “For every such person they receive approximately 200-250 US dollars. This is how much an average male labor slave costs."Upon arrival, Aleksandr was told that they owed the recruiters money for transportation and, having no money, his only option was to work.

Exploitation

Aleksandr was placed in a forced labor camp.One month after working without pay, Aleksandr was told that he had accumulated more debt by eating the traffickers' food and smoking their cigarettes. Aleksandr was never able to work off his debt and suffered five years of exploitation. During this period, he attempted several escapes but was intercepted and resold to perform different forms of forced labor, from brick-making to tending cattle. He worked 16-hour shifts, lived in very poor conditions, and suffered violence, sleep deprivation, and malnutrition.

Recruitment

Aleksandr was recruited at a train station, where he was looking for a job and a place to stay. It didn't take long for his documents and money to be stolen soon after arrival.Aleksandr was approached by a recruiter who offered him a meal. The trafficker gained Aleksandr's trust through friendly conversations, empathy, and empty promises.After eating, Aleksandr felt disoriented, and he later suspected that his food was likely laced with sedatives. Eventually, he fell unconscious.

Escape

During his final escape, he avoided big roads and moved only at night. One night he slipped into a pond and this accident caused a serious injury that left him unable to move his legs. He crawled to a train station, where some strangers found him and called an ambulance. Both his legs were amputated. An NGO helped him return home, but he did not survive post-surgery complications and died soon after.