Russian news outlets claimed that an American singer living in Russia for over a decade had been arrested on accusations of dr*g trafficking.
Mephedrone, which affects c0caine and MDMA, is reportedly something Michael Travis Leake is peddling.
According to the reports, he was sentenced to two months of pretrial custody by a Moscow court.
He’s been hit with dr*g distribution and production charges, which could land him in jail for up to 20 years.
According to his Instagram profile, Travis Leake is the lead vocalist for the band Lovi Noch (Seize the Night).
According to the media, Leake has been a former U.S. military paratrooper in Moscow since 2010.
Russia has very stringent dr*g prohibitions.
In February of 2022, WNBA star Brittney Griner was arrested at the Moscow airport when police discovered vape canisters with cannabis oil in her luggage.
She had nine years added to her sentence but was released in December after being swapped for a Russian arms dealer doing time in a US pr!son.
In an email to The Associated Press, the US Department of State confirmed that it was aware of rumors that an American citizen had been detained in Moscow.
It said when a US citizen is detained overseas, the department “pursues consular access as soon as possible and works to provide all appropriate consular assistance.”
State Dept tells @Abs_NBC:
“We are aware of reports of the recent arrest of a US citizen in Moscow. When a US citizen is detained overseas, the Department pursues consular access as soon as possible and works to provide all appropriate consular assistance.”
— Raf Sanchez (@rafsanchez) June 10, 2023
For reasons of confidentiality, the department declined additional comment.
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