August 16th, 2021

Trevor Reed, a 28 year old U.S citizen and Texas resident, was arrested by the Russian government on August 16, 2019 in Moscow, Russia. Prior to being arrested, Trevor had lived an average American life. Born in Texas and raised in California where he attended high school, Trevor spent his days at the beach, fishing, and devoting his time to becoming an eagle scout. Following his high school graduation, Trevor received his honorable discharge from the Marine Corps and then returned to college. Trevor continued on his life path and met his now girlfriend, a Russian woman named Alina, in 2017. Alina became like family to the Reeds and Trevor even attempted learning Russian for her. 

Due to their growing relationship, Trevor wanted to travel to Russia to spend time with Alina during the Summer, get acquainted with Russian culture, and take Russian language lessons to help with his college courses back in Texas. Unfortunately things took a turn for the worst on the night of August 15, 2019. Just one week before his flight home, Trevor and his girlfriend were heading home from a company party (Alina’s Legal Office) and got a ride from some people at the party. Trevor had been extremely intoxicated and during the drive home he had to exit the vehicle. Trevor was feeling extremely sick and shaky, and cops were called to assist. When Russian police arrived, they arrested Trevor and took him directly to the Police station in the early morning hours of August 16, 2019.

In Russia, instances of drunk behavior is usually responded by sending the intoxicated individual to the hospital, however the routine was surprisingly altered in Trevor’s case. At the police station, Alina was advised to return to the station in a few hours to pick up Trevor, insinuating that no charges would be placed on Trevor. Alina then communicated the events of that night to Trevor’s parents so they were aware of what was going on. Later that morning, when Alina went to pick up Trevor, she learned that Trevor had been interrogated by the Russian Federal Security Services with no lawyer present and quite possibly while under the influence. Alina also learned that Trevor had two charges against him. The first charge was a violation of registration rules due to not being properly registered while living with his girlfriend. This is a minor citation that is punishable by fine similar to a traffic ticket. The second charge was Article 318, Level II, Endangering the Life of a Government Official (police officers). The officers alleged that Trevor grabbed the arm of the police driver and caused the police vehicle to swerve onto oncoming lanes, and nearly turn over. The officers also alleged that Trevor elbowed the police officer in the backseat who intervened when Trevor grabbed the driver’s arm. This officer claimed to be bruised however was wearing body armor and did not show the alleged bruise to anyone. These events supposedly occurred within a 3-4 second time frame. The police officers changed their stories in writing and under oath during the trial at least four times. Their last statement under defense questioning was that they could not remember the details of that night.

There were cameras in the police car that recorded the drive to the police station however the officer never presented this in court. There were also a dozen of security cameras surrounding the area, including the inside and outside of the police station. Traffic video obtained by the defense does not show the police vehicle swerving at all and does show the car with Trevor’s girlfriend and others following close by. All video evidence was not allowed to be presented in court. Witnesses, which included Alina and others in the vehicle that drove closely behind the police, also claimed that the police car did not swerve. The defense strongly believes that the video evidence would exonerate Trevor and due to that specific reason, it was not allowed to be presented in court. Although the verdict was unjustified, Trevor was found guilty of Article 318, Level II, which holds a maximum sentence of 10 years. Trevor was sentenced to 9 years in prison, the longest sentence for this charge in modern Russian history. There are cases where individuals have used weaponry against the Russian police and have been sentenced to less time in Russian Prison. Trevor did not injure anyone and there are bystanders and video evidence to prove it. The fact that he received the longest prison sentence for this charge is extremely unjust.

Trevor’s family and girlfriend have been fighting endlessly to get Trevor back home however at this point it feels impossible to receive a fair trial from the Russian Court system. During his imprisonment, Trevor has faced covid-19, and has had to see his prison mates being taken out as dead bodies due to the lack of care and medical assistance in Russian prisons. In Russia, it is common to move prisoners from one location to another. Since his last transport, Trevor’s family, lawyers, and the U.S. embassy did not have contact with Trevor for almost one month. The Russian government would not disclose Trevor’s location to the U.S. Embassy causing Trevor’s family to fear for the worst. This is clearly a heavily politically influenced case, and Trevor and his family are left to suffer. We want to shed light on this story to bring awareness to the injustice U.S citizens may face in foreign countries such as Russia, for committing virtually zero crimes. In Trevor’s case, there is a plethora of evidence to prove his innocence, however he is still being treated like a criminal. This is the case with all hostage victims; evidence means nothing to corrupt foreign officials. We hope to share this story with as many people. Please reach out to your representatives and help ensure that Trevor is not forgotten and is brought home immediately.