Russia jails ex-US soldier for 13 years on drugs charges

Michael Travis Leake, who fronted Moscow-based rock band Lovi Noch, was detained in June 2023 after prosecutors accused him of "organising a drug dealing business involving young people".

Moscow's Khamovnitchesky court convicted him of offences linked to the sale of illegal narcotics, the courts service said in a post on Telegram.

It sentenced him to "13 years' imprisonment in a strict regime colony".

Leake was jailed alongside Veronika Grabanchuk, another defendant convicted of drugs offences. Her relation to Leake was not immediately clear.

Arrests of US citizens in Russia have increased in recent years, in what Washington sees as a Kremlin ploy to secure the release of Russians convicted abroad.

Among other American citizens held in Russian jails are former marines Robert Gilman and Paul Whelan, as well as journalists Evan Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva.

The White House has warned US citizens still in the country to "depart immediately" due to the risk of wrongful arrest.