A U.S. Army soldier has been arrested while traveling through Russia.
The Army has identified the detained U.S. soldier as Staff Sgt. Gordon C. Black.
Cynthia Smith, U.S. Army spokeswoman, told NTD News Staff Sgt. Black enlisted in the Army as an infantryman in 2008. She said he was assigned to Eighth Army, U.S. Forces Korea, at Camp Humphreys, Republic of South Korea, prior to his arrest on Thursday, May 2, in the southeastern Russian port city of Vladivostok.
“On April 10, Black out-processed from Eighth Army, and signed out on Permanent Change of Station [PCS] leave en route to Fort Cavazos, Texas,” Ms. Smith said. “Instead of returning to the continental United States, Black flew from Incheon, Republic of Korea through China to Vladivostok, Russia, for personal reasons.”
Ms. Smith did not offer further details about the personal reasons Staff Sgt. Black traveled to Russia.
“Black did not request official clearance and [the U.S. Department of Defense] did not authorize his travel to China and Russia. Official and leave travel is currently restricted pursuant to the DoD Foreign Clearance Guide,” she said.
Ms. Smith said Staff Sgt. Black was arrested on charges of theft of personal property, but offered no additional details about the arrest.
The U.S. soldier is currently in a pre-trial detention facility in Russia as he awaits his next hearing.
It’s unclear if Staff Sgt. Black was attempting to desert from his military duties or defect to Russia. Ms. Smith said there is no evidence Staff Sgt. Black intended to remain in Russia after his PCS leave period ended.
The Army spokeswoman said Russian authorities first notified the U.S. State Department about the arrest in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. The notification was then passed through the Army to the soldier’s family.
“U.S. Department of State is providing appropriate consular support to the Soldier in Russia,” the Army spokeswoman said. “Given the sensitivity of this matter, we are unable to provide additional details at this time.”
At a White House press briefing on Monday, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby acknowledged that the Biden administration was aware of the U.S. soldier’s reported detention in Russia but offered few details about the case.
“I can’t really say much about this case right now,” Mr. Kirby told reporters.
Other US Citizens Detained in Russia
Staff Sgt. Black’s arrest in Russia makes him just the latest U.S. citizen to be caught up in the Russian justice system.Retired U.S. Marine Paul Whelan is currently imprisoned in Russia after he was arrested in Moscow in December of 2018 on espionage charges. In March of last year, Russian authorities also arrested Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on spying charges, and he is awaiting a trial. The U.S. government has designated both men as wrongfully detained U.S. citizens.
Efforts to win the release of U.S. citizens detained in Russia are complicated by already strained relations between the two countries.
The arrest of the U.S. soldier in Vladivostok also comes less than a year after another U.S. soldier, Pvt. Travis King, 23, was detained after crossing over from South Korea into North Korea. According to a Department of Defense Assessment, Pvt. King intentionally fled over the demilitarized zone (DMZ) into North Korea. The Korean Central News Agency, a North Korean state news agency, reported that Pvt. King accompanied a tour group to the Panmunjom crossing point along the DMZ on July 18 and was detained for illegally intruding into the territory.
Prior to crossing into North Korea, Pvt. King served two months in a South Korean prison for assault and was due to return to Fort Bliss, Texas, where he could have faced additional military discipline and discharge from the service on July 18. North Korean authorities expelled Pvt. King to China in September, whereafter Chinese authorities transferred the Army private to the custody of the United States.
By October, the U.S. military had charged Pvt. King with desertion.
