A courtroom within the Russian Far Japanese metropolis of Vladivostok has ordered the arrest of US Workers Sergeant Gordon Black and despatched him to pretrial detention till no less than July 2, courtroom spokeswoman Jelena Olenev mentioned on Might 7.
She was black charged with “theft inflicting vital injury to a citizen,” Kommersant mentioned, citing Olenev. The utmost penalty for the cost is 5 years in jail.
Western media beforehand reported {that a} US soldier had been arrested in Russia and charged with theft after touring there from South Korea, the place he was stationed, with out informing his superiors, including to an inventory of People detained by Moscow amid deteriorating relations with Washington. .
US Military spokeswoman Cynthia Smith confirmed in a Might 6 assertion that the soldier, who was not recognized, was detained 4 days earlier in Vladivostok, a army and industrial port within the Russian Far East, on prices of legal misconduct.
She mentioned Russia knowledgeable the US and the army advised the soldier’s household. She gave no additional particulars within the assertion as a result of “sensitivity of the matter”.
The US embassy is in search of consular entry to him, CNN reported.
The soldier’s detention provides to the record of US residents detained in Russia underneath numerous circumstances and comes at a time when tensions between Moscow and Washington are at their highest degree because the Chilly Warfare.
Amongst these detained are journalists Alsu Kurmasheva of RFE/RL and Evan Gershkovich of The Wall Avenue Journal, who have been detained on prices they, their employers and their supporters reject as politically motivated.
Additionally detained is Paul Whelan, who was convicted and sentenced to 16 years in jail in 2020 for espionage, which he and the US authorities have repeatedly denied.
It was not instantly clear whether or not the detained soldier is taken into account absent with out go away (AWOL) by the US army.
Particulars of the incident stay sketchy, with one report saying the soldier was arrested in Vladivostok for allegedly stealing from a girl there.
“The Russian Federation notified the US State Division of the detention in accordance with the Vienna Conference on Consular Relations,” Smith mentioned in an announcement.
“The Military has notified his household and the US State Division is offering acceptable consular help to the soldier in Russia.”
Officers mentioned the soldier was stationed in South Korea – the place the US army has about 28,500 troops – and was within the technique of returning residence to Fort Cavazos, Texas, however traveled to Russia as an alternative.
“I’m deeply troubled by the information {that a} US army officer has been detained in Russia. Putin has a protracted historical past of holding Americans hostage,” Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), chairman of the Home International Affairs Committee, mentioned in an announcement. post on X, previously Twitter.
The International Workplace issued a “don’t journey” in September 2023 Warning US residents in opposition to the backdrop of Washington’s help for Ukraine in its battle in opposition to a large-scale Russian invasion of that nation. The memo cited “the singling out of Americans for detention by Russian authorities safety officers” in its warning.
When requested concerning the incident, a State Division spokesperson would solely verify that “an American citizen has been detained in Russia.”
“We reiterate our robust warnings concerning the hazard to US residents contained in the Russian Federation. US residents residing or touring in Russia ought to depart instantly, as outlined in our journey advisory for Russia,” the spokesperson mentioned.
The incident occurred lower than a 12 months after US soldier Travis King, additionally stationed in South Korea on the time, slipped into North Korea throughout the closely fortified demilitarized zone separating the 2 Koreas.
North Korea later expelled King, who was returned to the US and ultimately charged with desertion.
With an AP report
