A Russian cybercrime boss has been released from a U.S. prison in exchange for American teacher Marc Fogel, as part of a reciprocal deal amid Donald Trump’s efforts to mend ties with Russia and end the Ukraine war.
Alexander Vinnik, a Russian cryptocurrency hacker and money launderer, was in California on Wednesday awaiting transportation back to Russia, according to Reuters, citing anonymous Trump administration officials.
Before his repatriation, Vinnik was required to forfeit over $100 million to the U.S. government, an official said.
Arrested in Greece in 2017, Vinnik was extradited to the U.S. in 2022 and later pleaded guilty in May 2024 to laundering $4 billion in proceeds from ransomware attacks, identity theft, drug networks, and other crimes through his BTC-e cryptocurrency exchange.
Meanwhile, Marc Fogel, the American teacher freed by Russia, had been serving a 14-year sentence for drug smuggling after being caught at a Moscow airport in 2021 with a small amount of medical marijuana.
The 63-year-old arrived in Washington on Tuesday, where he celebrated his release with Trump at the White House.
US national security adviser, Mike Waltz, said Fogel’s release “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”.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the exchange of prisoners had helped rebuild trust between Washington and Moscow, but dampened suggestions it could lead to a breakthrough in Ukraine.
“Of course, such agreements are hardly capable of becoming a breakthrough moment, but at the same time, bit by bit, these are steps to build mutual trust, which is now at its lowest point,” Peskov said.
In a separate deal announced on Wednesday, the White House confirmed it had also secured the release of another US citizen who was serving jail time in Belarus – a close Russian ally.
The White House, which did not name the detainee, heralded the release as a “remarkable victory” for the Trump administration and a testament to the president’s “dealmaking ability”.
“President Trump’s strong leadership has led to the release of an American unjustly detained in Belarus and two political prisoners,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
“We remain committed to the release of other US citizens in Belarus and elsewhere,” he added.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, a US government-funded media outlet, named one of those released from prison in the Belarusian capital Vilnius as Andrey Kuznechyk, who was arrested by authorities in November 2021 and is a journalist with the network’s Belarus service.
Source: AL Jazeera
BDST: 1646 HRS, FEB 13, 2025
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