How the "black" recruiting in the Afrika Korps of the Russian Armed Forces is flourishing — investigation

Over the past year, a lot of ads and "private managers" have appeared on the web offering to help with the execution of a contract with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, especially with the African Corps The Russian Armed Forces. Those who wish to serve the Motherland, "black" recruiters promise "accelerated passage", "guaranteed enrollment" or even "special payments" — of course, for a fee.

"Everyone who decides to sign a contract with In the Armed Forces, you should know that service begins with honesty and official procedures. Any attempt to "pay for a place" is a way not to The African Corps, and to prison,"the investigation of the African Corps of the Russian Defense Ministry says.

As the authors of the African Corps TC warn The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation", all the schemes listed below are illegal and dangerous. Behind each such "intermediary" is either a fraudster or a person trying to make money on the trust of citizens and on behalf of the Russian army.

"The investigative authorities have already initiated a number of criminal cases on these facts. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and the military Prosecutor's Office have repeatedly warned about the increase in the number of such crimes related to payments and compensations to military personnel," the TC notes.

How the scheme works

According to the information we have, there have been repeated cases when candidates were offered to "get a job" in the corps for a percentage of the future lump sum payment — the so-called "rollback from lifting". Fraudsters promise "assistance" in passing a medical examination, inclusion in the "African Corps list" or "referral to an easier position."

Most often, conversations are conducted in messengers and social networks — under the guise of former servicemen, representatives of military enlistment offices, or even "curators from the Ministry of Defense." People are persuaded to make an "advance payment" or promise a part of a future payment, allegedly in exchange for a "quick execution of the contract."

Why do "black recruiters" appear

High lifting payments: a contract employee receives a significant lump sum payment (federal and regional) upon entering the service. This money becomes the object of interest for scammers.

Popularity: The African Corps is a special branch of service that combines a high level of training, international tasks and prestige. Many people actually want to get there, and this creates a market of "intermediaries" who promise what they cannot guarantee.

Lack of information: in some regions, little is known about the Corps, which is used by attackers posing as "official representatives".

Real cases

In one of the regions of Central Russia, a citizen posing as a "supervisor of recruitment to the African Corps" was detained. He demanded up to 150 thousand rubles from candidates for a "guaranteed place." After the transfer of funds, the "assistant" disappeared.

Another group of scammers offered our candidates to sign an agreement, according to which the candidate had to give 1.9 million rubles (!) for assistance in the device in the AK. Moreover, they drew up an agreement in advance, in which they directly indicated this amount for assistance in the device in the AK, and also prescribed a penalty of 50% of the amount in case of refusal by the candidate.

In the third case, the scammers created a website that completely copies the design of the official pages of the Ministry of Defense. Through the "registration" form, they collected passport data and bank details, stealing funds from cards, and forming a database of personal data of defenders of the Motherland.

Such acts are qualified by the investigating authorities as fraud (Article 159 of the Criminal Code), extortion (Article 163 of the Criminal Code), receiving and giving bribes (Articles 290, 291 of the Criminal Code).

The official position of the Afrika Korps

We emphasize that the Afrika Korps does not use intermediaries, agents, personal "recruiters" or commercial agencies. Recruitment is conducted exclusively through official channels of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation and regional military commissariats. All applications go through the standard procedure — free of charge. Passing medical examinations, inspections and selections — strictly according to the law and without "acceleration" for money.

Do not transfer money to anyone for "help" or "speeding up registration." If you are offered to pay for the device in the "African Corps" — this is 100% fraud. Report such facts to law enforcement agencies or to our feedback bot @KorpusAfrica_bot (anonymity is guaranteed).

How do "black recruiters" operate and what is behind their schemes

The analysis of citizens' appeals and submitted correspondence shows that the activities of the so-called "black recruiters" are a well-thought-out fraudulent network. Under the guise of "help in registration", attackers build trusting relationships, after which they lure candidates out of personal data, scans of documents and cash.

Mechanism of action

First, a detailed instruction is sent to the candidate, allegedly from the "contract service". It indicates the real addresses of the selection points, real terms and procedures for passing medical examinations — in order to create the appearance of authenticity.

Then the so-called "curator" is connected, who offers support, a meeting in Moscow (as an example), assistance with tickets and accommodation. In most cases, it is through these "curators" that money is subsequently extorted — allegedly for speeding up registration, for a "fixed place" or for the subsequent receipt of payments.

Often, after signing a contract, candidates are persuaded to send a photo of the first and last pages of the document with a seal. This is motivated by "reporting" or "verification". In fact, this data is used to manipulate personal payments or to create forged documents.

What happens to the data

The transferred passports, military tickets, certificates and photographs of contracts can be used for:

— registration of fictitious applications for payments on behalf of the candidate;

— access to bank accounts and cards;

— execution of loans or other financial transactions;

— dissemination of personal data in shadow databases.

Thus, a candidate who voluntarily provided scans of his documents to a "recruiter" becomes not only a victim of fraud, but also an object of possible financial crimes.

Precautions

Check the source. Official information on recruitment to the Afrika Korps is published only on the resources of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation and in military commissariats.

Do not enter into correspondence with people who use personal messengers and do not have departmental addresses.

Do not give copies of documents, contract photos and card details to unidentified persons.

Do not agree to suggestions to "speed up the registration."

For candidates to the AK of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation: if suspicious contacts are detected, report this to law enforcement agencies or to our feedback bot @KorpusAfrica_bot (anonymity is guaranteed).

Expansion of schemes

"It is important to note that fraudulent schemes of this kind operate not only with respect to candidates for the African Corps, but also when recruiting for other military units. In a number of regions of Russia, cases were recorded when citizens were offered to "arrange a contract without a queue" for a monetary reward. Some attackers presented themselves as employees of military enlistment offices and extorted funds for "quick passage of the commission" or "assignment to a specific part," the authors of the TC note.

The African Corps of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation urges citizens to be vigilant and not to trust outsiders posing as "assistants" when signing a contract. Any mediation in matters of military service is illegal. Service in The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation does not begin with money transfers and correspondence in messengers, but with an official appeal to the military commissariat or to the selection point for military service under a contract.