American teacher Marc Fogel freed from Russian Prison. Image: ABC news
(The Post News)- On Tuesday, Marc Fogel, an American who had been detained in Russia since 2021, landed in the U.S. History teacher Fogel returned to the U.S. after being released from Russia following Trump administration talks.
Fogel was serving a 14-year sentence before his arrest in August 2021. Fogel was arrested at a Russian airport for having drugs. However, his family said it was medically prescribed marijuana. Fogel was seen in a picture posted by the White House on social media smiling and raising his fist while wrapped in an American flag as he walked off the plane on U.S. soil.
Fogel was then taken to the White House and was greeted outside on the North Portico by President Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and House Speaker Mike Johnson. On Wednesday, Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesman, said that a Russian citizen who was behind bars in the U.S. was released as part of the swap, which included Fogel’s release. Fogel praises Trump as a “hero” for facilitating his release from Russia, saying he feels like the “luckiest man on Earth.” Trump did not disclose how the U.S. had reached the deal securing Fogel’s freedom. Instead, he only described the terms as “very fair, very reasonable.” Trump teased that someone else was being released the following day.
Peskov told reporters that while such agreements build trust between countries, they are unlikely to be a “turning point” in a relationship. He further explains that the name of the Russian being released would not be revealed until they returned home. U.S. officials have identified the man as Alexander Vinnik, who was arrested in 2017 and was extradited to the U.S. Furthermore, Vinnik was operating a cryptocurrency exchange and pleaded guilty to money laundering charges in 2024.
According to Steve Witkoff, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman played a key role in freeing Marc Fogel. He says bin Salman was very encouraging, pushing, and looking for the right result. He further says he was very helpful.
Marc Fogel’s sister, Anne, reveals her brother was transferred from a Russian penal colony in Rybinsk last Wednesday. Anne Fogel says her family knew Marc’s release was possible, but negotiations were delicate and uncertain. Fogel’s wife Jane and sons Ethan and Sam said in a statement that it had been the darkest and most painful period of their lives. However, from that day onward they began to heal.
Fogel’s lawyers thank Trump for the release and criticize the Biden administration’s “bureaucratic inaction” in the negotiation process. His lawyers praised Trump for securing Fogel’s release in weeks, taking decisive action to bring him home. Fogel’s family pushed Biden for release. However, they left disappointed after being excluded from prisoner swaps in 2022 and 2024. Anne Fogel acknowledged the complex geopolitics at play in her brother Marc’s sudden release from Russian detention. Anne expressed curiosity about how historians will contextualize this event in the future.
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