MOSCOW — Russian authorities have detained an American musician who has lived in the country for more than a decade on suspicion of drug trafficking.
According to Russian media outlets, Michael Travis Leake, was arrested on drug charges, the BBC reported. Moscow’s Khamovnichesky court claimed that Leake had “organized the sale of drugs to young people,” according to AFP.
Also arrested was Leake’s friend, Valeria Grobanyuk, The Guardian reported.
According to The Associated Press, Leake is suspected of selling mephedrone, whose effects are similar to those of cocaine and MDMA. The Moscow court ordered Leake to be detained for two months in pretrial detention, Russian media outlets reported.
If convicted, Leake and Grobanyuk could each face up to 12 years in prison, The Hill reported.
Russian state television showed footage of Leake locked in a metal cage, according to the BBC.
“I don’t understand why I’m here. I do not admit my guilt,” a man on camera identified by Russian state media as Leake said, according to The Guardian. “I do not believe that I could have done what I am accused of, because I do not know what I am accused of.”
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According to the AP, an Instagram page listed for Travis Leake identifies him as the singer for the band Lovi Noch (Seize the Night). The BBC reported that the band was an “American-fronted rock band” based in Moscow.
News outlets reported that Leake was a former paratrooper with the U.S. military and has lived in Moscow since 2010.
The case comes after the arrest of U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich, who was detained in March on espionage charges, The Guardian reported.
Last year, WNBA star Brittney Griner was detained for 10 months and was facing years in a penal colony in Russia after officials found cannabis oil in her luggage in February 2022.
Griner was imprisoned on drug charges and was convicted in court, but returned to the U.S. on Dec. 9, 2022, as part of a prisoner swap with Moscow that saw arms dealer Viktor Bout sent to Russia.