American soldier arrested in Russia sent to custody

A court in Russia's Far East town of Vladivostok has ordered the arrest of US Staff Sergeant Gordon Black and sent him into custody until at least July 2nd, the court's spokeswoman, Elena Oleneva, said on May 7th.

Black was charged with <x0-year-olds that have caused significant damage to a citizen”, Kommersant reported, citing the court's spokeswoman. The maximum penalty for prosecution is five years in prison.

Western media had reported earlier that an American soldier had been arrested in Russia and that he was charged with stealing after traveling there from South Korea, where he was determined, without informing his superiors, adding to Moscow's list of banned Americans in the midst of the worsening relationship with Washington.

American Army spokeswoman Cynthia Smith confirmed in a statement on May 6th that the soldier, who was not identified, was detained four days ago in Vladivostok, a military and commercial port in Russia's far east.

She said Russia announced the United States, and the army informed the soldier's family.

Smith did not give any more details in the statement because of the “outlook on this issue”.

The US Embassy is seeking consular access to him, CNN reported.

The soldier's ban adds to the list of American citizens held in Russia under different circumstances and comes as tensions between Moscow and Washington are at the highest levels since the Cold War.

Among those held are journalists Alsu Kurmaseva of Radio Free Europe and Evan Gershkovich of The Wall Street Journal, who have been detained on charges that they, their employers and supporters reject and view as politically motivated.

Similarly, Paul Whelan, who was sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020 for the spying charges he and the American government have repeatedly rejected.

It was not immediately clear whether the arrested soldier was viewed as missing without permission from the American military.

“The Russian Federation announced the US State Department for criminal ban in line with the Vienna Convention on Consultative Relations”, Smith said in the statement.

“Army announced his family and the US State Department is offering adequate consular support to the soldier in Russia”, she added.

Officials said the soldier was stationed in South Korea, where the American army has some 28,500 troops, and was in the process of returning home to Fort Cavazos, Texas, but instead traveled to Russia.

I am deeply concerned by reports that an American Army officer has been arrested in Russia. Putin has a long history of holding American citizens hostage,” said in an X post representative Michael McCaul, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee.

In September 2023 The State Department issued a warning “don't travel” for American citizens.

Asked about the incident, a State Department spokesman would only confirm that “an American citizen was detained in Russia”.

We repeat our strong warnings about the danger posed to American citizens within the Russian Federation. American citizens who reside or travel to Russia must leave immediately, as the spokesman said in our travel counsel to Russia,”.

The incident comes less than a year after US soldier Travis King, also located in South Korea at the time, moved to North Korea through the demilitarised, highly fortified area dividing the two countries.

North Korea later expelled King, who returned to the United States and was charged with desertion. /rel