Seven long years, Isaac worked under somebody else’s identity, using another man's name, with an identity card that was not his own. ‘My wages went into his account, and he paid me about 800 euros in cash every month,’ Isaac told VRT NEWS. Identity rental is common among people without valid papers, such as Isaac. ‘Would you prefer me to steal?’ he asks.
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Identity fraud in Belgium: For seven years Isaac worked under someone else's identity
Colin Clapson
Published:
When inspectors raided a logistics company in Ghent in June 2023, they immediately noticed that something was wrong. One of the employees did not resemble the photo on his identity card. This marked the beginning of an investigation into false identities and a lost finger, which would even take investigators abroad to the Netherlands.
For the man who worked there – we'll call him Isaac – the inspectors' visit marks the end of years of fraud. Isaac now tells VRT NEWS his story for the first time.
Over land, sea and mountains
Isaac's story begins in West Africa. ‘A classmate of mine had a brother-in-law in Belgium. This guy brought us music equipment that we used after school. That's when I decided: one day, I'm going to Belgium too.’
Isaac leaves his three children behind and travels via Niger, through the Libyan desert and then by boat to Italy. ‘That was in 2015, from Tripoli. All that time, Belgium was the destination I had in mind,’ says Isaac. From Italy, on foot, he crosses the border into France. Migration routes through the mountains are not that unusual. He eventually arrives in Belgium by train.
A rented identity
Isaac has no plan. Nor does he have any papers. ‘No, I haven't applied for asylum. I wouldn't know how to start,’ he says.
‘In the beginning, I slept in a church,’ he says. He gets food from the church community, where many other people with the same roots come. Until he receives an offer.
Through various channels, he comes into contact with Emmanuel*, a man who does have papers. ‘We met in the Gent-Dampoort station and made a deal.’ Isaac will use Emmanuel's identity. In exchange, he has to give Emmanuel part of his wages. ‘It’s like a boss and a slave,’ Isaac now says. ‘And I was happy with that situation.’
Through temp agencies, he ends up working for various employers in Ghent, including in the laboratory of a food company. At first, Emmanuel pays him around 800 euros, later 1,000 euros per month, in cash. To earn extra money, Isaac takes on another job, delivering newspapers.
He starts one job at around 2.30 a.m., then leaves for his second job at 8 a.m. ‘That's what I used to pay my rent, food and bus tickets. I sent what little was left to my children,’ Isaac says.
A lost finger
‘When there was no work in the lab for a while, I was asked to clean a number of tubes,’ Isaac says of his time working at the food company. ‘I had to stand on a ladder to do that. Then I slipped and fell,’ he says. That was in February 2018.
‘I saw that part of my finger was missing.’ At the hospital, the doctor told him that the piece of his finger could not be reattached. Isaac is resigned. ‘Who should I be angry with? I could be sad, but it had just happened.’
Absurdistan
Isaac ended up working under Emmanuel's identity for seven years. This led to some absurd situations. ‘For example, I had to celebrate my birthday on his birthday. Sometimes people would say “Happy Birthday”, and I had even forgotten that it should have been my birthday,’ Isaac explains.
The fraud continues until in June 2023 inspectors unexpectedly raid the logistics company where he is working. Isaac is taken in for questioning. Several absurd conversations follow.
‘It took hours,’ says Isaac. But when asked about Emmanuel's marriage, Isaac is caught out. He does not know the exact date and cannot remember who he is supposed to be married to.
The investigators continue and try to find Emmanuel. Eventually, they manage to question him too. It turns out that he lives in the Netherlands and works for two employers. At first, he denies that he has rented out his identity. But the inspectors see through his story.
Emmanuel still has all his fingers.
Tens of thousands of euros
The inspectors map out where Isaac worked and visit all his employers. All in all, Emmanuel earned tens of thousands of euros from Isaac's work. On the other hand, Isaac also lied about his identity, which is also illegal.
In September, a court ruled that Isaac must get his money back from Emmanuel. It amounts to 47,500 euros in withheld wages. On top of that is the money Isaac should have received after the accident at work in which he lost his finger: almost 8,600 euros. ‘But I haven't seen anything yet,’ Isaac says.
The employer didn't know
VRT News was also able to speak with one of Isaac's employers, the food company in Ghent. ‘To be clear, we knew nothing about his false identity. When the inspector came here, my reaction was one of disbelief,’ says one of the managers.
‘He worked here almost full-time as a temporary worker and did valuable work,’ says the employer. ‘When you hear that he earned very little, I find that very sad. He was always rather quiet, perhaps because he had to hide his real identity.’
‘We always treated him in the same way as our other employees and colleagues. We invited him to company parties and gave him a birthday present, just like all the other colleagues,’ says the manager. ‘Even after the accident at work, we helped him as much as we could. I find it particularly unfortunate that he was not properly compensated.’
Identity fraud is becoming more common
The secret he kept for seven years has now been revealed. Isaac says he is now living with a friend. ‘He buys food for me. Sometimes he even gives me some money to send to my children.’ Isaac has not worked for two years. ‘My church community helps me. And sometimes I do odd jobs for a little cash.’
In his circle, he often hears about people renting identities. ‘I hear that it still happens, that people use other identities. But I am a quiet person. Only my closest friends know what happened.’ Meanwhile, Isaac continues to live in hiding. He says that after the investigation he did not receive any order to leave the country.
VIDEO: Isaac at work
Lying or stealing?
Isaac does not see Emmanuel as ‘a bad person’. ‘I worked with his documents, so on his terms,’ Isaac concludes. He also acknowledges that he lied and agreed to the identity fraud. ‘But would it be better if I stole money out of other people's pockets?’
‘Some people say: let that guy go back to his own country. But if you ask me, I want to work. And if I work, that also generates taxes. But people are entitled to their own opinion,’ says Isaac.
*Isaac and Emmanuel are not the real names of the people involved. Some details have been deliberately omitted from their story. Their real names are known to VRT News.