A serving US Army sergeant has been detained in the Far Eastern Russian city of Vladivostok on suspicion of beating and robbing a Russian woman he was romantically involved with, according to the Izvestia newspaper.
The man, named by US officials as Staff Sergeant Gordon Black, 34, has been held by Russian authorities “on charges of criminal misconduct” since last Thursday, NBC News reported on Monday.
“The Russian Federation notified the US Department of State of the criminal detention in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations,” US Army spokesperson Cynthia Smith said in a statement, adding that Black was receiving consular support from the State Department.
Black had reportedly been stationed in South Korea and was on leave at the time of the incident. According to the Associated Press, he was due to redeploy home to Fort Cavazos in Texas. However, he reportedly took a detour through Russia without notifying his superiors.
Black, who is married, is said to have become involved with the alleged victim while they were both in South Korea. According to AP’s sources, they had a domestic dispute roughly half a year ago, after which the woman left for Vladivostok. Black followed her to the Russian city on his own initiative, according to Izvestia.
“He stayed with her for a while. At some point he began beating and strangling her. In the end he stole 200,000 rubles ($2,200) and some alcohol” before he left, the Russian newspaper wrote on Monday, quoting an anonymous source.
“It’s a domestic violence case, law enforcement are dealing with it,” RIA Novosti reported on Tuesday, quoting a separate source.
Both Russian and US authorities have warned their citizens against traveling to each other’s countries. The Foreign Ministry in Moscow has told Russians to exercise “extreme caution” when planning trips outside the country, noting that the US has extradition treaties with over 100 nations. Despite rising tensions, the two countries exchanged high-profile prisoners in 2022, when Russian businessman Viktor Bout was swapped for US basketball player Brittney Griner.