Ukrainian stranded at Toronto airport falls victim to theft
CTV
A Ukrainian newcomer had most of his belongings stolen during a three-day stay at Toronto Pearson Airport.
A Ukrainian newcomer had most of his belongings stolen during a three-day stay at Toronto Pearson Airport.
Vitali Laktionov landed at the airport last week. Because he had nowhere else to go, he stayed there. He said while he was sleeping, someone took almost everything he owned except his phone.
“My feeling was very bad because I [was] alone, my English is not well, I don’t have friends and I don’t have parents in this city,” he said.
His clothing, passport and documents were all taken. An airport organization put him in touch with Grassroots Response to the Ukrainian Crisis (GRUC) – a Waterloo Region group that helps newcomers find homes, documents, jobs and community support.
“They sent him to us and now we’ve started going through the process of getting all the documents reinstated and getting him clothing,” Stephanie Goertz, the founder of the group, said.
Laktionov is living at a home in Cambridge with a few other Ukrainian newcomers.
“It’s perfect because all of us are Ukrainian. It’s my people,” he said with a smile.
