Russia Upholds Detention of American Joseph Tater for Assaulting Police Officer, Reports Reuters

A Russian court has denied an appeal from U.S. citizen Joseph Tater regarding his arrest for allegedly assaulting a police officer, according to a statement from Moscow’s city court.

Tater was initially detained in August and sentenced to 15 days in jail for minor hooliganism after reportedly behaving inappropriately towards staff at a Moscow hotel, which he has denied.

Following this incident, reports indicated that Tater had assaulted a police officer, resulting in a new criminal case against him. This charge carries a potential penalty of up to five years in prison.

Details regarding Tater’s plea to the assault charge have not been disclosed, and attempts to contact his lawyer for comment were unsuccessful.

Tater is among at least ten Americans who are currently incarcerated in Russia. Additionally, in a separate case, an American named Daniel Joseph Schneider was sentenced to six years in prison in Kaliningrad for kidnapping his own son from the boy’s mother and attempting to smuggle him out of Russia through Poland.