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Wife of Army soldier detained in Russia previously retained divorce lawyer, not aware of his travels: attorney

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Wife of Army soldier detained in Russia previously retained divorce lawyer, not aware of his travels: attorney

The wife of a U.S. Army soldier being detained in Russia while visiting a girlfriend retained a divorce lawyer in 2022, and was not aware of his travels, her lawyer said Thursday. 

Staff Sgt. Gordon Black, 34, an infantry soldier, was detained in the Russian port city of Vladivostok on May 2. He was charged with criminal misconduct and is accused of stealing from his longtime girlfriend.

The regional branch of the Russian Interior Ministry said in a statement Tuesday that Black and his girlfriend had a conflict, and she reported him to the police, claiming that she found cash missing after he stayed with her, The Associated Press reported.

EVAN GERSHKOVICH MARKS ONE YEAR IMPRISONED IN RUSSIA AS FRIENDS CAN ONLY WAIT FOR ‘NIGHTMARE’ TO END

Gordon Black, a U.S. Army serviceman detained in Russia, poses for a selfie in this picture obtained from social media, in an unspecified location.   (Gordon Black via Facebook/Reuters)

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Black, who had out-processed from his duty station in South Korea, was supposed to fly back to the U.S. to report to Fort Cavazos, Texas.

“Megan Black wishes to make clear that she had no advance knowledge of Mr. Black’s intentions to travel to Russia,” her attorney, Brett Pritchard, said in a statement. 

She became aware of her husband being absent from Fort Cavaszos when Army investigators reached out to her about his whereabouts, Pritchard said. 

Gordon Black’s mother, Melody Jones, said she believes her son was set up. She said her son’s relationship with the Russian woman was “volatile,” and that she suspected the longtime girlfriend might be a spy.

“I knew something was going to happen,” Jones told “GMA.” “I felt like he was being set up by her.”

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Gordon Black in Iraq

U.S. Army soldier Gordon Black sends a holiday message from Iraq in 2009. His wife says she was not aware of his recent travel to Russia and had hired a divorce lawyer in July 2022 to begin efforts to dissolve the marriage, her attorney said Thursday.  (U.S. Dept. of Defense)

Black’s wife believes his decision to go to Russia, at a time when relations between Washington and Moscow are severely strained, was “ill-advised” but was motivated by “entirely personal reasons involving an extra-marital affair between himself and a Russian national, and that Mr. Black is not involved in any form of geopolitical intrigue.”

Pritchard confirmed that Megan Black retained his services in July 2022 to initiate divorce proceedings after nine years of marriage to her husband. The couple share a 6-year-old daughter, he said. 

The pair have known each other since 2014 and got married in Belton, Texas, a suburb near the Army installation, after Black was assigned there, Pritchard said. 

The Russian city of Vladivostok

The Russian port city of Vladivostok. It is where U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Gordon Black was detained last Thursday. (Natalia Kolesnikova / AFP via Getty Images)

Megan Black hopes her husband returns to the U.S. safely as soon as possible, Pritchard said. His arrest has put a strain on their daughter, “who has to deal with the dual uncertainty of not knowing when she will see or hear from her father again.”

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Meanwhile, the divorce proceedings remain “in limbo by a Texas family law court pending a potentially indefinite resolution of Mr. Black’s incarceration status,” Pritchard said. 

Fox News Digital’s Pilar Arias contributed to this report. 

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Southwest

Who is Mark Kelly? What to know about the senator from Arizona and possible VP pick

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Who is Mark Kelly? What to know about the senator from Arizona and possible VP pick

Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly, a Democrat, is rumored to be under consideration to serve as Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate in the 2024 presidential election.

Kelly, a 60-year-old former astronaut and U.S. Navy captain, has represented Arizona in the U.S. Senate since 2020.

Kelly was elected to the Senate in a 2020 special election that was held following the death of longtime Republican Sen. John McCain in 2018, defeating incumbent GOP Sen. Martha McSally.

A native of Orange, New Jersey, Kelly graduated from the United States Merchant Marine Academy in 1986. He later attended the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, receiving a Master of Science in aeronautical engineering in 1994.

ARIZONA SENATE CANDIDATE SAYS MARK KELLY WOULD GIVE HARRIS ‘JOLT’ AS VP

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Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., speaks with reporters on July 25, 2024 in Washington, D.C. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

Kelly became a naval aviator in 1987 and was assigned to Attack Squadron 115 in Japan. He made two deployments and flew nearly 40 combat missions in Operation Desert Storm.

He received an array of commendations for his service in the military and retired from the Navy in October 2011. At the time, he wrote in a post on social media, “From the day I entered the United States Merchant Marine Academy in the summer of 1982 to the moment I landed the Space Shuttle Endeavour three weeks ago, it has been my privilege to advance the ideals that define the United States of America.”

Along with his identical twin brother, Scott Kelly, he was selected by NASA to serve as a space shuttle pilot in 1996.

Kelly, who took numerous trips beyond Earth’s atmosphere during his illustrious career as an astronaut, has reportedly logged more than 54 days in space.

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Kelly, an independent turned Democrat in 2018, is the husband of former Rep. Gabby Giffords, D-Ariz., who he married in 2007.

Following the attempted assassination attempt of Giffords in 2012, Kelly shied away from public life to assist with his wife’s recovery efforts.

He is also the author of multiple books, including one he co-authored with Giffords in 2012 titled, “Enough: Our Fight to Keep America Safe from Gun Violence.”

HARRIS EDGES CLOSER TO TRUMP IN NEW POLL CONDUCTED AFTER BIDEN’S WITHDRAWAL

Mark-Kelly,-Kamala-Harris

Vice President Kamala Harris prepares to swear in Sen. Mark Kelly, D-riz., with his wife Gabrielle Giffords, center, in the old Senate Chamber for the Ceremonial Swearing on Jan. 3, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

In January 2013, Kelly and Giffords launched a political action committee named Americans for Responsible Solutions. The organization’s mission promoted what it believed to be solutions to gun violence with elected lawmakers and members of the public.

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He won re-election to the Senate in November 2022, when he defeated Republican nominee Blake Masters.

Kelly is not the first astronaut to be elected to Congress. Others include John Glenn, Harrison Schmitt and Jack Swigert.

He is viewed by many political strategists, primarily Democrats, as a safe move for Harris as she considers who will appear alongside her on the November ballot.

Three days after President Biden announced his decision to step aside in the 2024 race for the White House, Kelly fielded questions from reporters in the hallways of the U.S. Capitol, where he was asked whether he would accept the vice presidential nomination.

“This is not about me. This is about the future of this country,” Kelly said at the time.

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Kamala Harris speaks at her Presidential Campaign headquarters in Wilmington

Vice President Kamala Harris speaks at her presidential campaign headquarters in Wilmington, Delaware, on July 22, 2024. (Erin Schaff/Pool via REUTERS)

“This is a choice between Kamala Harris, who’s an experienced prosecutor, vice president, U.S. senator, [California] attorney general, and a guy who’s a convicted felon,” Kelly added.

Kelly also predicted, following Biden’s drop out, that Harris “is going to win” the state of Arizona in the 2024 election.



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Los Angeles, Ca

Iconic Santa Monica Pier Ferris wheel to light up for Team USA

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Iconic Santa Monica Pier Ferris wheel to light up for Team USA

The iconic Ferris wheel on the Santa Monica Pier will light up nightly during the Paris Olympics to cheer on Team USA beginning Friday.

The nightly light display will feature the five colored rings to symbolize the Olympic rings, a 90-foot-tall waving American flag to celebrate Team USA, a French flag for the current host country and the American flag to represent the games returning to the United States, specifically Los Angeles in 2028.  

The Ferris wheel will be lit up from sunset until 12:30 a.m.

The Pacific Wheel is the world’s only solar-powered Ferris wheel, featuring 174,000 LED lights mounted on its 40 spokes and two hubs. The wheel’s lighting system features 16.7 million color value combinations to display dynamic, custom, computer-generated lighting entertainment, according to a news release.

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Visitors can visit the theme park from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. to catch a ride on the nine-story carnival ride, which takes riders to heights of more than 130 feet over the Pacific Ocean.

If you can’t make it out to the Santa Monica Pier yourself, Pacific Park offers an online stream of the Ferris wheel.

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Los Angeles, Ca

Security guard attacked, hit with skateboard in Santa Ana

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Security guard attacked, hit with skateboard in Santa Ana

Police asked the public for help this week in their search for a man who attacked a Target security guard with a skateboard in Santa Ana last month.

The altercation occurred on June 10, when the security guard asked a trespassing suspect to leave the store located at 1441 W. 17th Street, according to the Santa Ana Police Department.

“The suspect struck the victim multiple times with his skateboard, causing injuries, and then fled the store,” the Police Department stated in a post on Instagram.

Police are searching for a suspect following an assault on a security guard in Santa Ana. (Santa Ana Police Department)

Video embedded on the post shows the suspect swinging a skateboard at the guard and then running out of the store.

The attacker was described as a White man between 18 and 25 years old. He had a thin build, curly blonde hair, and was wearing a black sweatshirt, light-colored shirt, blue plaid shorts, black socks and black shoes.

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Anyone with information was asked to call police at 714-245-8441.

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