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The court in Russia's westernmost Kaliningrad region said in a
statement that the convict, whose name wasn't given, visited
Kaliningrad in July 2023 to meet with his Russian-born son and
attempted to drive him out of the country. The boy's mother
didn't give her consent for that, it said.
The man was detained by Russian border guards near the village
of Lipovka close to the border with Poland while trying to
covertly leave Russia and charged with abduction of a minor and
attempted illegal crossing of the border.
There was no immediate comment from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.
The case comes as Russia-U.S. ties are at their lowest level
since the Cold War era over Moscow's action in Ukraine. Several
Americans are serving sentences in Russia on drug, theft or
assault convictions.
Last month, U.S.-Russian dual national Ksenia Khavana was
convicted of treason in a Russian court and sentenced to 12
years in prison on charges stemming from a donation of about $52
to a charity aiding Ukraine.
In the largest Russia-West prisoner exchange since the end of
the Cold War on Aug. 1, Moscow released Wall Street Journal
reporter Evan Gershkovich and American corporate security
executive Paul Whelan, both of whom were imprisoned on espionage
convictions.
In exchange for Russian spies held in the West, Moscow also
released U.S.-Russian dual national Alsu Kurmasheva, a Radio
Liberty/Radio Free Europe journalist sentenced to 6˝ years for
spreading “false information” about the Russian military.
Several prominent opposition figures who were imprisoned for
criticizing the military operation in Ukraine were also
released.
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