American school teacher Marc Fogel has been released from a Russian prison after three and a half years in captivity, national security adviser Mike Waltz shared Tuesday.
The 63-year-old, whom U.S. authorities had designated as wrongfully detained, was found guilty by a Russian court in 2022 and sentenced to 14 years for a minor marijuana infraction ― a harsher punishment than Russia has given to some convicted murderers.
“By tonight, Marc Fogel will be on American soil and reunited with his family and loved ones thanks to President Trump’s leadership,” Waltz said in a statement, noting that Fogel was released as part of a prisoner exchange negotiated by U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who flew him home on his plane.
Waltz didn’t provide any further details on the exchange except to say it “serves as a show of good faith from the Russians and a sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine.”
Two people familiar with the matter told CNN that Witkoff leveraged some of his relationships in the Middle East to finalize the exchange.
Fogel is set to meet with Trump at the White House on Tuesday night. The president told reporters that during negotiations, “we were treated very nicely by Russia, actually.”
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Before his 2021 arrest, Fogel had spent nearly a decade teaching at the Anglo-American School in Moscow, primarily to the children of diplomats. He was arrested and detained for possession of less than an ounce of cannabis that he was using to treat chronic back pain.
“We are beyond grateful, relieved and overwhelmed that after more than three years of detention, our father, husband and son, Marc Fogel, is finally coming home,” a statement from his wife, Jane Fogel, and his sons, Ethan and Sam, read.
This is the first high-profile American prisoner release in Trump’s second term. President Joe Biden’s administration oversaw negotiations to release WNBA player Brittney Griner, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan from the Kremlin.