Was Michael Gloss mentally ill? Top CIA official's son killed while fighting for Russia, his father breaks silence
A CIA spokesperson claimed Friday that the son of a top official in the agency passed away last year in April 'while fighting in the conflict in Ukraine.'
Michael Gloss, the son of CIA deputy director for digital innovation Juliane Gallina, lost his life, the spokeswoman stated, after a Russian news site stated that the 21-year-old American had enlisted in Russia's military.
Gallina and her family 'suffered an unimaginable personal tragedy in the spring of 2024 when her son Michael Gloss, who struggled with mental health issues, died while fighting in the conflict in Ukraine,' according to the CIA spokesperson, NBC reported.
However, Gloss's side of the conflict at the time was not mentioned in the statement.
'CIA considers Michael's passing to be a private family matter for the Gloss family — not a national security issue,' the spokesperson said. 'The entire CIA family is heartbroken for their loss.'
'Juliane and her husband shared that 'we adored our son and grieve his loss every moment. We appreciate privacy at this difficult time',' the spokesperson added.
Last year, Michael Gloss posted on social media a picture of himself grinning on Red Square in Moscow and said he sympathized with Russia's military operation against what he referred to as 'the Ukraine Proxy war.'
He said that news reports about the battle, which he referred to as 'western propaganda,' were hiding the truth about a struggle in which Russian forces were superior to a purportedly corrupt Ukrainian forces.
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Larry Gloss, the father of deceased American, stated that his was an anti-establishment activist who 'would not hurt a flea.'
Speaking to The Washington Post, Gloss, a veteran of the Iraq War, that when the officials informed that their son had been killed, he and his family had no information about that he was fighting for Russia.
Gloss further said Michael battled mental illness for the majority of his life.
Larry Gloss told the Post that his son traveled to Georgia, a former Soviet country, where he participated a conference of the counterculture movement known as 'Rainbow Family.' The following month, he informed his parents that he had entered Russia to meet up with others from the group.
His parents did not believe he would enlist in the Russian military, but they were dubious about the decision.
After telling his parents that he intended to remain in Russia, Michael joined the Russian military in September 2023, according to iStories, which discovered a record of his enlistment in a Russian database.
A Russian soldier in the 137th Airborne Regiment claimed to know Michael, who was deployed to the battlefront in Ukraine in December 2023 and allocated to an assault unit, according to IStories.
Russian forces moved to seize the beleaguered fortress of Bakhmut, while the regiment's soldiers were positioned in the Donetsk region northwest of the city of Soledar.
Citing the Russian death certificate, Michael's father stated that his son died on April 4, 2024, from severe blood loss sustained while attempting to assist a injured comrade during an artillery fire.
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