US citizen found dead in deportation center in Russia
A 56-year-old US citizen, Ernest Mitchell, who was waiting for deportation from Russia, was found dead in the center for temporary detention of foreigners in the village of Novoukrainskii, in the Gulkevichi district, in the Krasnodar Territory.
This was reported by Radio Svoboda, Ukrinform reported.
According to Russian media, Mitchell was detained on November 17 in Sochi on the grounds that his health insurance policy was not valid in Russia. The Sochi City Court sentenced him to a fine of three thousand rubles and expulsion from Russia, although Mitchell explained that the insurance company had assured him that the policy was valid worldwide. Other media outlets cite sources saying that Mitchell allegedly tried to travel to self-proclaimed Abkhazia with 'undeclared funds'.
The US citizen was sent to a temporary detention center for foreigners in Novoukrainskii before being deported. Later, his body with cuts to veins and arteries on his arms, legs and neck was found in a restroom, the media reported.
In Russian publics, the cause of Mitchell's death is called suicide. There is no confirmation of this information yet.
As reported, in the fall, the US State Department issued a recommendation for all American citizens calling for increased caution while abroad.