Russia ‘s government released an American citizen detained on charges of possession of a small amount of marijuana ahead of talks between Russian and US officials in Saudi Arabia, a spokesman for the US Embassy in Moscow said.
Kalob Byers, 28, an American citizen had been detained at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport in America during a baggage check on February 7, after customs officials found cannabis-laced marmalade in his luggage.
‘Welcome Gesture’
The US Embassy spokesman called Byers’ release by Moscow “a welcome gesture”. Representatives for the US Department of State did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Kremlin, asked on Monday if Byers’ release suggested a warming in US-Russia ties, said the talks in the Saudi capital Riyadh were aimed at restoring relations between Moscow and Washington.
“Certain events can be viewed in this context”, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Back To US
Byers’ mother, Tonya Shuler, wrote on Facebook on Saturday that her son was “now in American custody and at the US embassy waiting for his flight home” from Russia.
He had faced up to ten years in prison on the drug smuggling charge.
The Embassy spokesman, asked by Reuters when Byers was expected to fly home, declined further comment.
At least 10 other Americans remain behind bars in Russia.
They include Stephen Hubbard, a 73-year-old native of Michigan jailed in October for nearly seven years on charges that he served as a mercenary in Ukraine. His family has denied he took up arms.
Another, Ksenia Karelina, a dual Russian-American citizen, was sentenced to 12 years in prison last year for donating just over $50 to a US charity that provides humanitarian support to Ukraine.
Both Hubbard and Karelina have been designated by Washington as “wrongfully detained,” which opens up diplomatic avenues to negotiate their release.
Russia last week freed Marc Fogel, a US schoolteacher and former employee of the US embassy in Moscow, who had also received the “wrongfully detained” designation. Fogel had served three and a half years of a 14-year sentence for drug smuggling after being caught in possession of a small amount of marijuana.
In exchange, Washington released Alexander Vinnik, a convicted Russian cybercriminal who had pleaded guilty in a US court to conspiring to launder money.
(with inputs from Reuters)
