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Scams and poetry in Moscow’s underbelly

Eric Ngalle Charles was just a teenager when he was trafficked from Cameroon to Russia

Eric Ngalle is now a poet and academic in the Welsh capital of Cardiff, but it's his experiences as a people-trafficked teenager that inspire much of his work. When he was 17, he found himself broke and alone in Moscow, freezing cold and unable to speak a word of Russian. To survive, he relied on charity, girlfriends, and a brief stripping career. None of this was enough to buy him a ticket home to Cameroon, so he got involved in a high-risk scam, which targeted some very dangerous people.

If you’ve been affected by anything you heard in this interview, support is available through the ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Action Line website or via Befrienders Worldwide.

Presenter: Asya Fouks
Producer: Harry Graham

Get in touch: WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707

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38 minutes

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  • Lives Less Ordinary

    Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected. Extraordinary personal stories