Rep. Mike Kelly statement on release of Brittney Griner, efforts to bring home Pa. native Marc Fogel held in Russia

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly (R-PA) released the following statement regarding the release of WNBA star Brittney Griner from Russian custody, and on Pittsburgh-area resident and Butler County native Marc Fogel, who remains in Russian custody.

"I am pleased to hear the news that Brittney Griner was released this morning and is returning to the United States. However, I remain deeply disappointed that the Biden administration was not able to secure the release of Marc Fogel. I urge the administration to include Mr. Fogel in any future negotiations, and I am once again calling on the State Department to further designate Mr. Fogel as 'wrongfully detained.' He is serving 14 years for possessing 17 grams -- or just over half an ounce -- of medical marijuana. That is egregious, even under Russia's current laws.

"This is a great day for the Griner family. I hope to see the Fogel family have the same reunion soon. To the Fogel family: we are not giving up on bringing Marc home."

BACKGROUND

Mr. Fogel is a Butler County, Pennsylvania native and taught history courses at schools attended by children of U.S. diplomats in Columbia, Venezuela, Oman, Malaysia, and Russia. In August 2021, he was detained at the Sheremetyevo Airport with a small amount of medical marijuana prescribed for his chronic back pain. In June 2022, he was sentenced to fourteen years of hard labor in a Russian prison, a sentence usually reserved for large-scale drug smugglers.

Under federal law, Mr. Fogel meets at least six of the eleven established criteria to be designated as “wrongfully detained” by the State Department.

Russian law defines a "large amount" of marijuana to be 100 grams (about 3.5 ounces) or more, according to reports.

In November, Reps. Kelly, Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA) and Glenn Thompson (R-PA) signed on as original cosponsors to a resolution urging the State Department to declare Mr. Fogel as "wrongfully detained."

At the beginning of August, Rep. Reschenthaler led a letter to Secretary Antony Blinken urging the State Department to immediately designate Mr. Fogel as “wrongfully detained” and ensure he is included in any negotiations to bring Americans imprisoned in Russia home.