Your daily adult tube feed all in one place!
US soldier Gordon Black is sentenced to nearly four years in brutal Russian penal colony over theft and threatening to murder his local girlfriend
An American soldier detained in Russia on charges of theft and threats to kill his girlfriend was found guilty Wednesday and sentenced to three years and nine months in a Russian penal colony.
Gordon Black, 34, is a staff sergeant who was detained on May 2 in Vladivostok in Russia's far east.
He pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges of threatening to kill his girlfriend but admitted he was 'partially' guilty of stealing from her.
Black's defense lawyer will appeal the verdict, a Russian news agency reported, adding the judge handed down the sentence of 'imprisonment of three years and nine months' for both charges.
The agency said prosecutors had asked for a prison sentence of four years and eight months, while the defense asked for Black to be acquitted of all charges.
An American soldier detained in Russia on charges of theft and threats to kill his girlfriend was found guilty Wednesday and sentenced to three years and nine months in a Russian penal colony
Gordon Black, 34, is a staff sergeant who was detained on May 2 in Vladivostok in Russia's far east
Black 'partially' acknowledged his guilt on the charge of stealing 10,000 roubles ($113) from his girlfriend Alexandra Vashchuk's purse but said that 'there was no intent,' RIA reported.
The pair had met in South Korea, where Black was stationed.
The Pentagon has said that he broke army rules by travelling to Russia without authorisation, having passed through China.
Black has a wife and child in Texas. His wife Megan told Reuters last month that he and Vashchuk had a tempestuous relationship.
Black, 35, had reportedly just finished his service in South Korea and traveled to Russia without permission.
But his mom Melody Jones has refuted this narrative and claims her son was 'set up', stating his girlfriend asked her to wire her $600 before his arrest.
'She was trying to ask us for money,' she told Fox. 'She wanted me to set up another account and send money to her', agreeing the request was a 'red flag'.
She reiterated previous comments about her sense of unease over her son's plans to visit his girlfriend.
Black's defense lawyer will appeal the verdict, a Russian news agency reported, adding the judge handed down the sentence of 'imprisonment of three years and nine months' for both charges
Black 'partially' acknowledged his guilt on the charge of stealing 10,000 roubles ($113) from his girlfriend Alexandra Vashchuk's (pictured) purse but said that 'there was no intent,' RIA reported
'I told him I had a really bad feeling about him going,' she added. 'I was worried more then what – than when he was in Iraq for some reason.
'We’re like on pins and needles. We’re, you know, really tired, of course, worried. I just wish I could hear his voice.'
She added that the girlfriend has not been back in touch since but has been active on TikTok posting videos of him.
Black was questioned for nine hours upon arrival at a Russian airport, Jones said, adding that she does not know if her son had a visa to visit Russia.
Jones said Black met his girlfriend at a club in South Korea over a year ago and they had a 'volatile' relationship.
Black had reportedly claimed his girlfriend got deported from South Korea after they were involved in a dispute in the fall of 2023.
Pictures posted on social media showed them together in January and earlier.
Russian reports say that two weeks after coming to Vladivostok the US Army staff sergeant 'beat his beloved and stole 200,000 roubles from her.'
Black had reportedly claimed his girlfriend got deported from South Korea after they were involved in a dispute in the fall of 2023
Black's mom Melody Jones has refuted this narrative and claims her son was 'set up', stating his girlfriend asked her to wire her $600 before his arrest
The court did not list any charge of violence against him.
Pro-Kremlin BAZA news outlet, with links to law enforcement, said Gordon came to Russia in mid-April.
'About two weeks later they quarreled and, according to [Aleksa], Gordon beat her.' they said. 'After that, he stole 200,000 rubles and alcohol from her.'
The court ordered him to be held in pre-trial detention until July 2nd on a charge that could see him jailed for five years.
Black was supposed to transfer from South Korea to Fort Cavazos in Texas.
The Russian Foreign Ministry’s office in Vladivostok has said Black's arrest is not political or related to espionage.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the US is aware of the cause but could not say much more at the moment.
Army spokeswoman Cynthia O. Smith said: 'The Russian Federation notified the U.S. Department of State of the criminal detention in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
Black is now one of several American citizens currently imprisoned in Russia
Melody Jones said Black was on a two-week leave when he traveled to Russia, and that she felt he was being set up because she suspected his girlfriend was a spy
'The Army notified his family and the U.S. Department of State is providing appropriate consular support to the soldier in Russia. Given the sensitivity of this matter, we are unable to provide additional details at this time.'
Black is now one of several American citizens currently imprisoned in Russia.
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has been held by Russia since last March.
Meanwhile former Marine Paul Whelan has been jailed since 2018; he is sentenced to 16 years in prison after being convicted of espionage.
Both are wrongfully detained, according to the US government.
Moreover, American-Russian ballerina Ksenia Karelina has been jailed in Russia since January or donating $51 to a Ukrainian charity.
She was charged with treason and faces up to 20 years in jail for making a small donation to the humanitarian charity Razom on the day Russia invaded Ukraine.
The payment was discovered after her phone was seized when she flew into Yekaterinburg's Koltsovo Airport on January 2, planning to visit her 90-year-old grandparents in time for Russia's Christmas day.
The US government has warned US citizens against traveling to Russia.