More on KentOnline
More on KentOnline
A man who travelled to the Democratic Republic of the Congo to help the fight against Ebola was robbed on his return home.
Last month, KentOnline reported how Dean Miller had began a fundraising campaign to get him to the central African country.
Dean, from Dock Road, Chatham, owns his own decontamination company and works with a product he believes could reduce the spread of the deadly virus.
More than 1,800 people have died and at least 2,700 infected during the latest outbreak.
After being invited to travel to the DRC by the British embassy, he made the trip to the capital Kinshasa on Tuesday, August 27.
He met with health officials and donated 40 litres of Decon7, a powerful decontaminant, and £3,400-worth of cleaning equipment.
His return journey included a stop-over in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Flight staff from Ethiopian Airlines informed him that he would be staying overnight in a hotel in the capital as part of his transfer and upon arrival at the airport, he was escorted to a bus which he was told was going to his hotel.
The 36-year-old said: “Within the bus there was only myself, the driver and a gentlemen who advised he worked at the hotel.
“The route of the bus journey seemed peculiar as we drove past the hotel and around which seemed to be in a circle.
“At this point I started to panic and thought I was in the process of being kidnapped and feared for my life.
“I was then driven to the outside of the hotel where I insisted the driver stop the vehicle and unload my luggage.”
He noticed his laptop case was lighter than usual and as he grabbed his other belongings, the driver set off with the side door still open.
“When I was handed my laptop case, I immediately noticed the difference in weight and my charging cables hanging out the side.
“I said, ‘What are you doing?’
“At this point I grabbed my belongings from the floor and the driver started to drive off, the side door still open.
“The driver or the gentleman took my wallet which contained $500 and cards from my back pocket of my jeans.
“I then fell from the moving vehicle through the side door. At this point I was standing directly outside the hotel where I shouted, “Call the police, I have been robbed!’”
Dean was booked in and stayed at the hotel overnight waiting for the police but in the morning discovered they had not been called.
“I was a confident and helpful person until this happened to me..." Dean Miller
He returned to the airport and flew home. and informed staff of the situation who were accommodating and allowed him to upgrade to business class for the return flight.
He has issued a formal complaint to Ethiopian Airlines and is looking to recoup his losses from the self-funded trip he made with the support of Decon7, where he works as a business development manager.
He is now waiting for laboratories in the country to approve the product so that it can be applied in hospitals.
He said: “I was a confident and helpful person until this happened to me. I am now struggling to sleep and I am concerned that everyone that is nice to me has an alternative motive.”
But he added: “I am still determined to do what I set out to do to help the Congolese people.”
