This month marks the third anniversary of the incarceration of Marc Fogel, an IUP alumni who was arrested in Russia. A group of Congressmen lead by Senator Bob Casey has advanced a letter urging the Biden Administration to declare him as a “wrongfully detained person”.
Fogel was arrested after authorities found medicinal marijuana that was legally prescribed to him in his luggage, and in June of 2022, he was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to 14 years in prison. He is currently serving his sentence in a Russian Penal Colony. Since his arrest, there have been prisoner exchanges between the US and Russia, but Fogel has not been part of those deals. This included the exchange on August 1st that brought Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and others.
On Wednesday, Senator Casey led a bicameral and bipartisan group of lawmakers in urging Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to prioritize Fogel’s case and to give him the “wrongfully detained” designation, saying the term will “underscore the political nature of his continued detention by the Russian government and the failure of humanitarian and other efforts thus far to bring about Marc’s release,” and say that Fogel’s case is just as important as the others who have been released.
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