2026-10-01 14:54:00Fokus SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
"Amster Overseas"

Rajesh's family turned to the Indian recruitment company Amster Overseas in 2023 , looking for a new employment opportunity abroad. 

Rajesh had just returned from Dubai, where he had worked for about a decade, but had lost his job during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Meanwhile, the increase in home loan installments had put the family under great financial pressure.

According to Ambily, Rajesh's wife, the company initially asked for around 2.5 lakh rupees, approximately 2,700 euros, for an unskilled job in Albania .

However, she claims that in the following months the family paid a total of around 6,600 euros, with justifications linking the additional payments to visa refusals, administrative delays and the Russia-Ukraine war situation.

To secure the money, the family sold about 40 gold sovereigns, borrowed from microfinance companies, and, in the end, was forced to sell their house.

 "We lost the money we had earned after years of hard work. We sold our house to avoid being foreclosed on by the bank," Ambily said.

After more than a year of waiting, delays, and additional payments, Rajesh and four other people traveled to Albania on March 3, 2025.

According to Ambily, about a week after arriving, three of them, including Rajesh, were sent for a job they thought would be in a quarry.

 But, according to her testimony, they ended up in a chrome mine, deep in a snow-covered mountainous area.

Ambily claims that the conditions there were extremely difficult. According to her, Rajesh had told her about people who had lost limbs or suffered severe injuries to their hands.

"Rajesh initially had difficulty breathing, but he insisted on working because of the debts we had at home. He told me that we had a lot of debts and that he couldn't come back empty-handed," she said.

After about 15 days, according to Ambily, Rajesh lost consciousness. She claims that his hands were black and bleeding due to the cold.

But, according to her testimony, the problems did not end with leaving the mine.

From Albania to the Greek border

Ambily claims that the group was then taken towards the Greek border. According to her, they were asked to sign documents declaring that they had entered Greece illegally.

Rajesh, according to his wife, refused to sign, while the other four people agreed to sign the documents.

Then, according to Ambily, the young people were threatened that they could be banned from entering Europe until 2030.

Fearing the possibility of arrest, four of them fled towards the forest.

Ambily claims they were chased by the police, ran for more than 50 kilometers and remained in hiding for several days.

Return to India

Meanwhile, Rajesh returned to Kochi via Amster Overseas, after, according to Ambily, he had expressed his intention to file a complaint regarding what he had experienced.

But, according to her, instead of returning home immediately, Rajesh was kept in a hotel in Ernakulam.

Initially, the family says that agency representatives reassured him by promising him a visa to Bahrain and telling him that he would soon be sent back abroad.

Meanwhile, according to Ambily, Rajesh was forced to work in a restaurant in Edappally.

"He did cleaning work for almost 20 hours a day. For four months, they only paid him about 40 thousand rupees, approximately 440 euros," she claimed.

The clash with the agency

The situation changed when Ambily and Rajesh started demanding explanations and warned that they would approach the police.

Ambily claims that at that point they began receiving threats.

"They threatened us. They told us not to talk about what had happened," she said.

After an initial attempt to lodge a complaint at the Palarivattom police station, Ambily approached the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP). Following this, according to her, criminal proceedings were registered.

Ambily says she managed to recover about Rs 4 lakh, while the family's total losses exceeded Rs 9 lakh. Despite the amount recovered, she refused to withdraw the case.

"I want to warn other families"

Ambily says she has decided to continue speaking publicly about her family's experience, despite the financial arrangements.

According to her, the goal is not only to recover lost money, but also to warn other people who may be lured by similar promises of employment abroad.

" I want other families to know what happened before they believe similar promises and fall into the trap ," Ambily said./ Onmanorama


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