Russian citizen Artem Kosolapov, who had filed for asylum in the United States together with his wife Olga Kosolapova, was detained in the state of Arkansas, the Russian Refugee Foundation reports. As the group’s co-founder Sergei Vlasov told The Insider, Kosolapov was sent to an immigration detention facility, while his wife and child were left alone at home without any means of support. According to the human rights advocate, no court date has yet been set for their case, and there is a high risk that it will be heard in the court attached to the detention facility.
“They’re at risk of losing their business and their housing and being left with enormous debt on the two vehicles Artem used for his business. He supported the family and paid taxes. On top of that, he faces a serious risk of deportation. If you have a court date set in your state, you wait for the court’s decision. If no court date has been set and you get detained, you’ll be tried in detention, where there’s a huge chance of being denied asylum and ordered deported.
The couple has residency in New Jersey. Their case was built around Olga’s asylum claim as an antiwar activist. No court date has been set for them in New Jersey yet. Olga has been waiting this whole time for an interview call, which hasn’t been scheduled either. In effect, Artem has been taken hostage. If a court date is now set at the detention facility, they will most likely be deported. We are raising money for a lawyer to file a petition for Artem to be released on bail in order to save him from imminent deportation.”
Kosolapov was detained on Aug. 23 while driving a minivan carrying a commercial load. After his documents were checked, the Russian was detained and initially sent to an immigration detention facility in Louisiana. As Vlasov clarified, the facility in that state turned out to be overcrowded, and Artem was transferred to another one.
The family came to the U.S. on visas in 2022 and filed for asylum. Olga is an antiwar activist who has taken part in protests in support of Ukraine and volunteered to help Ukrainians. Artem also took part in the protests. Olga is now alone at home with their infant child. She is not currently working; Artem had been the sole breadwinner.
In July, U.S. authorities detained a record number of immigrants — nearly 50,000 people. The month also set a record for deportations, almost 34,000. Lawyers and human rights advocates note that the Trump administration has changed its approach to detaining non-citizens: whereas an arrest was formerly carried out by a group of 10–12 ICE officers, now a pair of police officers simply pull a car over on the road and detain the driver. As a result, bystanders often find it hard to tell whether a police officer is conducting a routine vehicle check or carrying out an immigration arrest. This is exactly how Artem Kosolapov was detained.
