The Ukrainian National News Agency (Ukrinform) reported that Ayebusiwa Olabode Victor, a 34-year-old Nigerian national, was killed on the frontline in the Kharkiv region.
The news regarding the death of Ayebusiwa Olabode Victor broke on Thursday, May 28, 2026, when Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) officially released his details, which were immediately published by Ukrinform at 1:38 PM.
Key Details of the Report
According to information released by Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR), Victor was killed during combat with Ukrainian defense forces near the settlement of Grafske in the Kharkiv region.
According to Ukrinform – Ukrainian National News Agency b
Background: He was born on April 28, 1992, and was originally from the town of Ilutitun in Ondo State, Nigeria.
The Recruitment Scheme: Intelligence reports from Kyiv Post indicate that Victor’s death is part of a broader, systemic practice where Russian recruiters lure African citizens to Russia with false promises of lucrative employment or security jobs. Upon arrival, their travel documents are often confiscated, and they are coerced into military contracts to serve as frontline troops.
This is not an isolated incident. Over the past few months, Ukrainian intelligence has named multiple other Nigerian nationals killed or captured while fighting on behalf of Russia after being deceptively recruited:
Hamzat Kazeem Kolawole and Mbah Stephen Udoka were identified as killed by a drone strike in the Luhansk region, while
Kehinde Oluwagbemileke was captured alive by Ukraine-aligned forces in the Zaporizhzhia region.
However, in response to these casualties, the Nigeria Ministry of Foreign Affairs has previously issued strong warnings to its citizens to remain highly vigilant against illegal recruitment schemes offering job or migration incentives that end up sending young men into foreign combat zones.
Investigation by Sooth News reveals the deceased Nigerian used an expired passport (No. A09863847). The document, issued in Festac, Nigeria, on 25/10/2018, expired on 24/10/2023.
Sooth News is demanding answers to critical unresolved questions: Were these Nigerian citizens lured into recruitment using expired travel documents, or had they been living undocumented in the region without the means to renew their passports.
