Russia has recently freed an American educator who had been incarcerated due to charges related to medical marijuana, as claimed by his relatives. The release of Marc Fogel, who was sentenced to 14 years for drug offenses since his arrest in August 2021, marks a positive shift in U.S.-Russia diplomatic relations according to statements from the White House. Fogel’s wrongful detention was formally recognized by President Joe Biden’s administration last December.

This development comes after a significant prisoner exchange in August, which included the release of Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich and corporate security professional Paul Whelan, among others.

Despite Fogel’s release, several other Americans continue to languish in Russian prisons. Here are some individuals who remain detained:

**Ksenia Khavana**
An American with dual Russian nationality, Khavana was apprehended in Yekaterinburg in January 2024 on charges of treason, stemming from a donation she made to a charity supporting Ukraine. Sentenced to 12 years in prison in August, Khavana had obtained American citizenship after marrying an U.S. citizen and was visiting family from Los Angeles at the time of her arrest. Human rights advocates claim her treason charges arose from a mere $51 donation to a charity assisting Ukraine.

**Stephen Hubbard**
Hubbard hails from Michigan and was convicted in October 2024 of having fought alongside the Ukrainian military as a mercenary against Russian forces. He received a sentence of 6 years and 10 months. Prosecutors revealed during a closed trial that Hubbard had enlisted with the Ukrainian military immediately following Russia’s invasion in February 2022 and fought until his capture two months later. At 72 years old, Hubbard became the first known American to be convicted for fighting alongside Ukraine during this conflict.

**Travis Leake**
Leake, a musician and frontman for the band Lovi Noch (Seize the Night), was sentenced to 13 years in prison on drug-related charges in July 2024. Reports indicated that he was a former paratrooper in the U.S. military who had been residing in Moscow since 2010.

**Gordon Black**
Black, an Army staff sergeant, faced conviction in Vladivostok in June 2024. He was sentenced to three years and nine months for theft and making threats against his girlfriend. His legal troubles began after he traveled to Russia from his post in South Korea without proper authorization and was arrested after his girlfriend accused him of stealing.

**Robert Woodland**
Woodland, a U.S. citizen born in Russia, was convicted of drug trafficking in July 2024 and sentenced to 12.5 years in prison. Reports suggest that his case mirrors that of a U.S. citizen who, on a television show in 2020, discussed his adoption by an American family after being born in the Perm region in 1991. He returned to Russia in search of his biological mother.

**David Barnes**
Barnes, an engineer from Texas, found himself in legal trouble while visiting his sons in Russia in 2022, where their mother had taken them. His supporters assert that the woman made unsubstantiated claims of sexual abuse—claims already dismissed by Texas investigators. Nevertheless, a Russian court convicted him in February 2024 based on these allegations, handing him a lengthy prison sentence of 21 years.

**Robert Gilman**
The media has identified Gilman as a former Marine. He was arrested in 2022 following an alleged assault on a police officer during a drunken incident on a train. Initially given a 3.5-year sentence, Gilman later faced a daunting change in circumstances after reportedly assaulting a prison inspector during a routine check, which resulted in an additional sentence of 7 years and 1 month in prison in October 2024.

**Eugene Spector**
Spector, a Russian-born American citizen imprisoned for bribery, received a second 15-year sentence for espionage in December 2024. He was previously sentenced to 3.5 years in September 2022 for facilitating bribes to a Russian government official and formerly held a position as an executive at a medical equipment firm in Russia.

**Joseph Tater**
Tater was apprehended at a luxury hotel in Moscow in August 2024 for allegedly failing to present valid entry documents. During his detention, he allegedly assaulted a police officer. Tater is currently awaiting trial for this offense, which could lead to a five-year prison sentence. During a September hearing, he claimed his intent in Russia was to seek political asylum, alleging persecution by the CIA.