International Law
American Pastor Gets 3-Yr Sentence in Moscow
An evangelical pastor and hunting enthusiast has been sentenced to three years in a Russian prison for illegally bringing a box of ammunition to the country.
Phillip H. Miles of Christ Community Church in Conway, S.C., has been in jail since his arrest on Feb. 3 for failing to declare a $25 box of ammo, the New York Times reports.
Miles had planned to give the ammo to a fellow pastor, who also enjoyed hunting, in Perm.
“I’m very disappointed,” Miles is quoted saying. “It’s a strange sentence for one box of hunting bullets.”
Miles says he was told by U.S. airline officials that it was OK to carry the bullets and that there were no indication in English at the Russian airport that he needed to declare the ammunition.
