Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and former US Marine Paul Whelan have been dramatically released from prison in Russia.
The men were released as part of a major prisoner swap with Moscow, reportedly involving some 20 to 30 political prisoners.
Gershkovich, 32, was arrested in March 2023 on charges of espionage that the United States says is unlawful. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison in July.
Whelan, 54, has been imprisoned in Russia since 2018 and was sentenced to 16 years in prison for espionage in 2020.
The US denies he was ever involved in espionage activities.
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has been released from prison in Russia
Former US Marine Paul Whelan has also been released as part of the major prisoner swap
Four Russians held in the US on suspicion of cybercrime, smuggling and money laundering, among other things, are said to have been involved in the transaction.
According to the Moscow Times, these individuals recently disappeared from the federal database of prisoners in America.
Earlier this week, Slovenian broadcaster N1 Slovenia raised speculation that a prisoner exchange was imminent.
The reports noted an exchange between the US, Germany, Russia and Belarus.
If claims of an exchange of up to 30 prisoners are true, it would be the largest prisoner swap between the United States and Russia since the end of the Cold War.
According to the anonymous source quoted by the Moscow Times, Russian authorities “made great efforts to keep the information in Russia as secret as possible until the last moment.”
The developments took place on Wednesday, when Kremlin military planes flew to remote areas of Russia where political prisoners are being held.
The US government has repeatedly stated that it is committed to releasing Gershkovich, which it believes has been wrongly held.
Gershkovich was arrested in March 2023 on charges of espionage that the United States considers unlawful. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison in July
Gershkovich was the son of Soviet émigrés who settled in New Jersey. He spoke fluent Russian and moved to Russia in 2017 to work for The Moscow Times newspaper. In 2022, he was hired by the WSJ.
Whelan, a security manager from Michigan, was arrested in 2018 in Moscow while attending a friend’s wedding.
He continues to maintain his innocence and says the charges are trumped up.
Few details are known about the conditions under which most of the men are behind bars. Whelan’s lawyer said in recent days that she no longer knew where he was being held.
This is breaking news. Check back later for updates.