A Pittsburgh area school teacher has been excluded from a major prisoner swap between the United States, Russia, and several other countries, according to Pennsylvania congressional lawmakers.
Marc Fogel, 63, was detained at a Moscow airport in 2021 for possession of medical marijuana. He was sentenced in 2022 to 14-years and is “still sitting in a Russian prison,” U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-Pa.) said in a statement.
While Casey called the historic, multi-country prisoner swap “good news,” he also expressed disappointment that Fogel was not included in the exchange.
Fogel, a Butler County native, suffers from chronic health issues and used medical marijuana to treat spinal pain. His health has significantly declined while behind bars in Russia, according to Casey.
“Negotiating with a foreign adversary is no easy task, but as the Administration has worked to bring home high-profile Americans like Brittney Griner, Evan Gershkovich, and Paul Whelan—we have only asked that they also prioritize Marc’s release,” the senator stated, noting that Fogel’s name wasn’t in the news every day compared to other American detainees.
“Today is a day of mixed emotions,” Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pa.) said in a statement, adding that he is “happy for all the Russian-held hostages” who are returning home but very frustrated that Fogel was left behind.
“The sad reality that Marc Fogel is not headed back to Western Pennsylvania makes this a crushing day for his family, our community, and all who have been in the fight to try and bring him home.”
President Joe Biden held a news conference earlier Thursday to celebrate the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Russian American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, U.S. Marine veteran Paul Whelan, and Russian British dissident Vladimir Kara-Murza.
“Deals like this one come with tough calls, never any guarantees,” the president said. “There’s nothing that matters more to me than protecting Americans at home and abroad, and so we’ll continue to work for the release of all wrongfully detained Americans around the world.”
National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan mirrored a similar statement in a separate press briefing. He specifically named Fogel and assured that efforts to secure his release remain in the works.
“Today was a very good day, and we’re going to build on it. Drawing inspiration and continued courage from it for all of those who were held hostage or wrongfully detained around the world,” he named.
Fogel’s case has been compared to that of American basketball star Brittney Griner. The WNBA player was arrested in February 2022 at a Russian airport for possession of vape cartridges containing cannabis oil. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nine years at a labor camp. Griner was released in December of the same year in a prisoner swap in exchange for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout.
But unlike Griner, Fogel has not been labeled by the U.S. State Department as wrongfully detained. The lack of classification by the government as unjustly imprisoned prompted Pennsylvania Reps. Mark Kelly, Chris Deluzio, and Brendan Boyle to introduce the Marc Fogel Act, which would require the State Department to submit documents and communication to Congress about how it determines whether a U.S. citizen is being wrongfully detained.
From The Epoch Times