Three men were also detained while attempting to fly to the aggressor country Russia through the UAE; another one, presumably, had already reached Russia.
In South Africa, participation in another country's armed forces without government permission is illegal. All those arrested will remain in custody until a bail hearing next week.
Mantula's case comes amid separate allegations against Duduzile Zuma-Sambulda, the daughter of former South African President Jacob Zuma. She is suspected of deceiving 17 men into traveling to Russia by promising them “security training” and jobs. Now the authorities are trying to find out how these people ended up on the front line and are working to return them to their homeland.
The South African government is also warning citizens about the dangers of recruitment through social networks under the guise of offers to work or study in Russia.
