The Washington-Moscow prisoner exchange this month saw Alexander Vinnik, a Russian cryptocurrency expert who faced Bitcoin fraud charges in the United States, returned to Russia after being freed for American Marc Fogel, a teacher from Pennsylvania who was detained in 2021 when traveling to Russia to work at a school.
Russia has detained another U.S. citizen, after customs officials found cannabis-laced marmalade in his luggage, Russian media said Friday, days after a Moscow-Washington prisoner swap that the White House called a diplomatic thaw and a step toward ending the fighting in Ukraine.
President Donald Trump on Wednesday upended three years of U.S. policy toward Ukraine, saying he and Russian leader Vladimir Putin had agreed to begin negotiations on ending the conflict following a lengthy direct phone call.
Russian police said the 28-year-old American had attempted to smuggle a “significant amount” of drugs into the country, the Interfax agency reported, citing Russia’s Federal Customs Service.
Mash, a Russian Telegram channel with links to the security services, said the U.S. citizen, identified only as K. Byers, faced up to seven years in prison if convicted.
