Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
The State Department announced that an American teacher was arrested in Russian airport he was labeled wrongfully detained by the US government on drug charges more than three years ago.
Marc Fogel, a history professor from Pennsylvania, is serving a 14-year prison sentence after being arrested at a Russian airport in August 2021 for drug possessionwhich his family and supporters said was medically prescribed marijuana.
Fogel was left out of a major prisoner swap in August that freed several Americans, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and corporate security director Paul Whelan.
US CITIZEN IMPRISONED IN RUSSIA SENTENCED TO NEW 15-YEAR SENTENCE FOR ESPIONAGE
Lisa Hyland, left, and other family members of Marco Fogel, who has been detained in Russia since August 2021, gather outside the White House for his release, July 15, 2023, in Washington. (AP)
After the prisoner swap, which also freed a dozen German nationals, lawyers for Fogel’s family again asked the Biden administration to work to secure his freedom, including labeling him wrongfully detained.
The State Department considers several factors in choosing whether to declare an American imprisoned in a foreign country wrongfully detained, such as whether there is credible information that the person is innocent or is being held primarily to influence US policy or secure concessions from the US government.
“The United States has been working for some time to secure the release of Marco Fogel,” the State Department said in a statement. “We have long sought his humanitarian release and tried to include him in the August 1 deal, but we were unsuccessful. The secretary found that Marc was unjustly detained in October.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken determined that Marc Fogel was wrongfully detained in October, according to the State Department. (Photos courtesy of Ellen Keelan and Lisa Hyland)
Designating someone as wrongfully detained traditionally shifts oversight of their case to the Office of the Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, which is within the State Department and is focused on negotiating the release of hostages and other Americans classified as wrongfully detained in foreign countries.
Fogel’s wife, Jane, and his sons, Ethan and Sam, said in a statement that they were grateful the State Department “finally acknowledged what we knew all along — that our husband and father, Marc Fogel, was and continues to be unjustly detained .”
RUSSIA ARRESTS A SUSPECT ACCUSED OF THE MURDER OF A SENIOR GENERAL IN MOSCOW
The exterior of the State Department complex on March 14, 2023 in Washington, DC (Nathan Posner/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“Now that we have the full force of the US government behind us, we must do everything in our power to bring Marco home as quickly and safely as possible,” the family continued.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
