Russia releases imprisoned schoolteacher Marc Fogel in ‘show of good faith,’ says Trump administration

U.S. President Donald Trump’s national security adviser, Mike Waltz, announced on Tuesday that Washington has secured the release of Marc Fogel. According to Waltz, the exchange “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.” The New York Times reported that the deal was negotiated by Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff. Fogel was flown out of Russia on Mr. Witkoff’s plane.

Marc Fogel, a former U.S. Embassy employee in Moscow and a schoolteacher, was arrested on drug smuggling charges in August 2021 after officials at Sheremetyevo Airport found cannabis and hash oil in his possession. Fogel says he was carrying medical marijuana prescribed by his doctor. In June 2022, he was sentenced to 14 years in prison.

“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,” Fogel’s family said in a statement.