An American has been detained in Russia on drug charges that could send him to prison for 20 years, a Moscow court said on Tuesday.
Robert Romanov Woodland was detained on January 5 on charges of illegal acquisition or possession of drugs, the Ostankino District Court said.
He will remain detained until at least March 5.
The 32-year-old man allegedly attempted to have large-scale drug production and sales, according to Russian outlet Mash.
He is accused of “illegal acquisition, storage, transportation, production and processing of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances or their analogues,” according to NBC News.
If convicted, Woodland could be sentenced to eight to 20 years in prison and face an unlimited fine.
He has no criminal record, but court documents obtained by NBC News say investigators believe “criminal activity is his primary source of income,” as prosecutors argued that pretrial detention was justified by the possibility of him going into hiding.
Robert Romanov Woodland remained in custody until March 5 on his charges, according to the Ostankino District Court in Moscow. Facebook / Robert Woodland
Woodland’s defense attorney attempted to request house arrest, the court document states, but a judge denied the request because there was nothing in his medical history to suggest he could not be placed in a pretrial detention facility.
The teacher of Russian origin had returned to the country to teach English.
He told a Russian newspaper in 2020 that he had been adopted in 1993 by American citizens from an orphanage in Perm, in the Urals.
Woodland was charged with attempted large-scale production and sale of illegal drugs. Facebook / Robert Woodland
Woodland told the outlet that he had searched for his biological mother and found her, having met on Russian state television.
“Mom was crying and asking for forgiveness, but I forgave her before this meeting. I have never been angry with her. I just always missed her so much,” she said on the show. “I felt attracted to Russia with tremendous force. So here I am. “I have decided to stay in my homeland forever.” Woodland appears to have American and Russian passports.
Several Americans are currently imprisoned in Russia, including
Woodland faces years in prison for his drug charges, which can carry up to 20 years in prison in Russia. Instagram / @roman_askhatovich A Facebook account in the name of Robert Woodland indicated that he was an English teacher in Russia.Facebook / Robert Woodland
Marine Corps veteran Paul Whelan and Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
The US State Department said they were unfairly detained and warned Americans to leave Russia immediately for fear of more detentions.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn