British Tourist Constantly Confused for Russian Rebel Due to Same Name While on Vacation in Malaysia

A Scottish hitchhiker has encountered border questioning multiple times solely due to sharing the same name as a sought-after Russian defector.

John Dougan, 31, is hitchhiking 14,000 miles from Aberdeen to Hong Kong to raise money for charity .

However, border officials have been raising eyebrows upon seeing the name on his passport – the same name as the wanted individual John Mark Dougan.

Dougan, a former Florida A police officer who was transferred to Moscow is alleged to be responsible for operating hundreds of websites that disseminate Russian propaganda.

Not only do they share a name and the same birthdate, but the Scotsman also says that the fugitive contacted him directly. Facebook 15 years ago.

Following reports of the travel chaos, Dougan made a lighthearted apology video. Instagram due to the issues he was creating.

Speaking to John mentioned from Bulgaria: "I was pulled out of the car and interrogated just because my name matches this person's."

'It happens quite often and with different levels of severity.'

'I need to tell those who've given me a ride that I'm not a criminal.'

‘Their suspicions really spike when the authorities come and question me.

'I am concerned that a border official might prefer being cautious and end up saying "no." This could entirely halt my travel plans and prevent me from fundraising.'

Dougan escaped to Moscow in 2016 after the FBI raided his flat and has made appearances on a Russian state-owned TV station, according to the BBC .

John’s passport troubles started several years ago, with one of the worst being when he crossed the border from North Macedonia into Greece.

John mentioned, "I needed to leave the car, something that has occurred to me previously."

'However, they remained quite doubtful and took some time before they accepted that it was indeed him.'

'They continuously glanced at me and then checked their screens for visual verifications and such.'

'I was in a room that resembled an interrogation setting from an American reality TV show.'

John encountered difficulties when he crossed into Bulgaria on foot, and he fears that these issues will intensify as he continues his journey through the Middle East.

At the age of 15, when John received a message on Facebook from someone claiming to be named Dougan, he was offered payment to do a voice recording for that person’s firm’s answering machine.

Although John was eager to go ahead with it, his mother put an end to the idea.

John mentioned, "Back when Facebook initially began, people in America who shared the same last name would connect with me and wished to converse about their family background."

‘Me and him had a brief conversation and then it concluded with him asking me to record like a voicemail for his legal company.

'My mother believed it wasn't a wise notion.'

'This entire scenario is basically just incredibly amusing and funny.'

Over the weekend, things got more complicated when someone who claimed to be Dougan responded to the hitchhiker’s Instagram video regarding the tale.

Seemingly in a Moscow pub, the man wished his counterpart well and invited him to Russia for steak and drinks.

In his video response, he says: "The fellow featured here is quite awesome. His name is John Dougan, but he isn’t John Mark Dougan. That’s who I am."

'That’s the fellow they keeps halting this unfortunate person. I genuinely feel bad about it. However, could you please do something for me? Whenever you’re halted at any country’s border, drop me a message so I can steer clear of those places.'

John remains unfazed by this development and simply aims to reach Hong Kong.

He intends to travel through Turkey and the Caucasus regions before arriving in Kazakhstan.

"If they seem truly doubtful when I cross the border in Kazakhstan or Uzbekistan, I'm concerned that they might not risk letting me through," John said.

'The current problem is that there aren't many routing choices available since British citizens cannot travel through countries such as Iran.'

His top priority is fundraising for Shout.

John mentioned: 'Much of this involves improvising and working things out along the way.'

‘Hopefully I can raise as much money for the charity as possible and I’ll find out what’s next when we get there.’

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