By Tata Mbunwe
A family in Douala is desperately seeking answers about their son and brother, Kongnyuy Bright Solie, a 26-year-old Cameroonian university graduate who was allegedly forced into the Russian military after travelling to Russia on the promise of a job.
He has not been heard from since December 22, 2025, a family member told MMI News.
According to the relative, he was recruited through an agent who offered him a work opportunity at a company in Russia shortly after his graduation.
After arriving Russia, Kongnyuy was reportedly detained without papers and later forced into the army.
He went three months without contacting his family after the conscription. When he finally called home, he said he had been injured and hospitalised.
On the day he was due to be discharged, December 22, 2025, he called to say he was being taken to an unknown destination in a tinted military vehicle.
No family member has heard from him since. Russian authorities have made no communication concerning his whereabouts.
The case mirrors the plight of dozens of Cameroonian families who have lost contact with relatives recruited into the Russian military.
On Wednesday, October 28, families of those killed or missing marched to the Russian Embassy in Yaoundé under the banner “Bring Back Our Sons and Brothers,” demanding accountability from Russian authorities and the repatriation of remains.
Cameroon’s Ministry of External Relations confirmed in a leaked diplomatic note in April that at least 16 Cameroonians had died fighting for Russia in Ukraine.
Independent monitors, however, place the toll far higher. A report by All Eyes on Wagner, a group investigating mercenary activities, documented at least 94 Cameroonian deaths between 2023 and 2025, and estimated that 335 Cameroonians were among more than 1,400 Africans recruited by Moscow.
Ukrainian intelligence has also reported that at least 106 Cameroonians have been killed fighting in Russian ranks since the start of the war.
The pattern of recruitment has been consistent. Families who protested in Yaounde said young men are lured by promises of well-paid jobs, student visas, or administrative regularisation, only to find themselves on the front lines in Ukraine. Russian authorities have denied illegally recruiting African citizens.