Pako Namogang- A Short History of a Botswana National Recruited by Russia and Killed in Luhansk Region
DIU has identified another African national killed while fighting for Russia — Pako Namogang, a citizen of Botswana, born on 30 May 2001. He is the first identified Botswana national to have been killed in Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Namogang’s decision to join the Russian occupation forces was a conscious one. He was recruited through social media: a Russian recruiter in a WhatsApp group called “Work in Russia” explicitly stated that he was looking for people to serve in the Russian army.
Moreover, Namogang implicated his own friends by handing over their personal information, including passport details, to Russian recruiters. Their current whereabouts and status remain unknown.
On 6 July 2026, Namogang departed for Moscow from Johannesburg Airport in the Republic of South Africa (South Africa).
On 7 July, after arriving in the capital of the aggressor state, Namogang was accommodated in a hotel. On 21 July, he signed a one-year contract. The person responsible for this process was Senior Lieutenant A. V. Levykin (russian: А. В. Левикин).
In correspondence with the Russian recruiter, the Botswana national was assured that someone would be waiting for him in South Africa to help him register and board the flight. This was likely an official from the Russian Trade Representation.
It appears that the Russians are deliberately violating South African law, including the Regulation of Foreign Military Assistance Act 15 of 1998, by facilitating the transfer of mercenaries and arranging their documentation on South African territory. Such activities may result in criminal liability.
On 7 July, after arriving in the capital of the aggressor state, Namogang was accommodated in a hotel. On 21 July, he signed a one-year contract. The person responsible for this process was Senior Lieutenant A. V. Levykin (russian: А. В. Левикин).
The recruitment of Pako Namogang and other foreign mercenaries also involved so-called “brokers” — Yelizaveta Sergeyevna Savinovskikh (russian: Савиновских Елизавета Сергеевна, born on 23 May 2002) and Mikhail Sergeyevich Petrushenko (russian: Петрушенко Михаил Сергеевич, born on 8 August 1992). These “brokers” are effectively traffickers in foreign nationals who organize recruitment and act as intermediaries, including by arranging the transfer of mercenaries to the russian occupation army.
The “I Want to Live” project has information on at least 25 Botswana nationals who signed contracts with Russian forces. One is being held as a prisoner of war, and at least one — Pako Namogang — has been killed in the war.
After signing their contracts, Pako and the other mercenaries were housed at the Avangard Military-Patriotic Education Center for Youth, located in Patriot Park near moscow.
It is known that Avangard instructors took part in training foreign mercenaries. Thus, the kremlin is using training facilities ostensibly intended for youth education as a military base. This directly violates the norms of international humanitarian law and endangers civilians, including children, present on Avangard’s premises.
The Botswana national was subsequently transferred to a Russian army training center, where he spent a week and a half before being sent to the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
Pako’s life was short: he was reportedly killed in combat around mid-August 2026 near the settlement of Novoliubivka in Luhansk region.
The “I Want to Live” project has information on at least 25 Botswana nationals who signed contracts with Russian forces. One is being held as a prisoner of war, and at least one — Pako Namogang — has been killed in the war.
