A United States military personnel is in custody in Russia, being held on what is described as criminal conduct allegations, as announced by the US military on Monday. It was relayed by a US representative, who requested confidentiality, that the accused serviceman had been stationed in South Korea. Further information from a US source reported that the serviceman was being accused of theft from a female acquaintance.
Specifics of the allegations were not provided by the military, attributing this to the delicacy of the issue involved. They stated that the US Department for State had been informed of his detention for criminal actions by Moscow, following the conditions specified by the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
The troubling news of the US serviceman’s detainment was initially spread by NBC News. It occurred in Vladivostok, Russia on the 2nd of May, 2024 where he was placed into custody following alleged criminal activity.
While the Russian embassy located in Washington remained silent on the matter, the Russian publication Izvestia reportedly got inside information from an anonymous source. This source claimed the individual, an army sergeant based in South Korea, had found romance online with a woman residing in Vladivostok. The report further claims that they cohabitated for a period but that he is now accused of assaulting her and pilfering 200,000 roubles, equivalent to €2,036.
Contrary to these events, a host of efforts have been made by President Joe Biden’s team to ensure that numerous Americans in Russian custody are released. This includes Evan Gershkovich, a journalist working for the Wall Street Journal, who was taken into custody on the allegation of spying, making him the first US reporter arrested on such charges since the Cold War era.
Both Gershkovich and fellow detainee Paul Whelan, another American accused of espionage by Russia and sentenced to 16 years in prison in 2020, have since been labelled as “wrongfully detained” by the US Department for State. This implies that Washington refutes the charges against these men and is working towards their release.
Regarding the serviceman’s current predicament, the only confirmation given by a spokesperson for the US Department for State is that a US citizen has been detained in Russia. They went on to restate the caution presented to US citizens in Russia due to the evident risks. Their advice was for any US citizens currently based or planning to travel in Russia to leave immediately, as per their official Travel Advisory for Russia. Additional details in regards to the case were not offered because of privacy and other considerations.