A U.S. soldier captured in Russia earlier this year was sentenced to nearly four years in prison on Wednesday, according to Russian state media The Associated Press.
Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, 34, will serve three years and nine months in a Russian penal colony for theft and threats to murder accused by his girlfriend Alexandra Vashchuk. He admitted partial theft but denied making threats to murder.
He was also ordered to pay $115 in compensation, RIA Novosti and TASS news agencies reported.
Prosecutors urged Black to be sentenced to four years and eight months in prison, while defense attorneys asked for his acquittal.
US soldier arrested in Russia on theft charges goes on trial
Chief of Army Staff. Gordon Black, 34, was sentenced in a Russian court to three years and nine months in prison for theft and threats to murder accused by his girlfriend Alexandra Vashchuk. (Associated Press)
Black flew to Vladivostok, Russia to visit Vashchuk. On May 2, Black accused Vashchuk of stealing his belongings, and Black was subsequently detained.
According to the Associated Press, Washchuk told reporters weeks ago that Blake “became aggressive and assaulted her” during a “simple domestic dispute,” which allegedly resulted in him taking money from her without her permission. Money was taken from the wallet.
Pentagon policy states that service members are not allowed to travel internationally without permission from a security manager or commander. Black did not seek permission and his trip to Russia was not authorized by the Department of Defense, according to an earlier statement from the Army.
Mother of US soldier detained in Russia while visiting girlfriend thinks he was ‘set up’
Army spokesperson Cynthia Smith said Blake, who was on leave at the time, had returned to his base in Texas after being discharged from Camp Humphreys in South Korea and traveling to Russia “for personal reasons.”
Blake was arrested in Russia on May 2 after a dispute with his girlfriend. (Associated Press)
U.S. officials said he met his Russian girlfriend while stationed in South Korea, although he had a wife and children there.
She left South Korea last fall after “some type of domestic dispute or altercation” with Blake, according to the Associated Press. It was unclear whether South Korean authorities had any involvement in her leaving the country.
Black’s sentencing adds to an already complicated relationship with Russia that has been strained by the war in Ukraine and the small number of Americans in Russian prisons.
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Black joins Paul Whelan, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, musician Travis Leake, teacher Mark Fogel and dual nationals Arsu Kurmasheva and K. Senja Havana was imprisoned in Russia.
Paul Whelan (left) and Evan Gershkovich (right) are two Americans the United States says were wrongly detained in Russia. (Fox News Digital)
The U.S. government has declared that Whelan and Gershkovich were wrongfully detained and is working to negotiate their release.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
