American farmer who built a life in Russia says he and his family are facing deportation

Justus Walker, an American farmer known as “The Merry Milkman” who lives on a farm in Russia’s Altai Krai, said Russian authorities plan to expel his family from the country. He said he received a call informing him that authorities intend to revoke his residence permit.

“This is just a shock for us. On Monday, at 10 a.m., we’re going to go [find out] exactly what [happened], and see the order. We’re trying to find out in advance what options we might have. There seems to be an option to appeal. But if it turns out that what we’ve been told is true: that this is a revocation of the residence permit, that this is expulsion, then we will have only a few days for the family to leave,” Walker said.

Walker said his family has invested nearly all of its savings in the farm. If they’re expelled from Russia, they will need 900,000 rubles, but he currently has only 400,000.

Justus Walker, an American, first arrived in Russia with his parents at age 11. When they returned to the U.S. in 2000, he came back to Russia on his own, and a few years later took up farming.

Walker gained recognition in Russia in 2014 after appearing in a segment on the program Vesti about Russia’s ban on food imports from other countries. In that segment, a laughing Walker told reporters that Russians would have to buy his cheese instead: “Why, why? Because there won’t be any of your Italian cheese.”

The independent Russian news outlet Mediazona notes that in recent years, Walker has publicly opposed gold mining in the Altai region and criticized local officials for pressuring agricultural producers.