(AP MODIFIED) — After spending more than five years in a Russian prison, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan has been freed as part of a prisoner swap, the AP reports, citing to Turkish officials.
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was also part of the swap, which allows the two wrongfully detained Americans held in Moscow to return home.
According to CNN, the prisoner swap involved 24 detainees and seven countries. A report from Reuters on Wednesday night said it would likely involve Russia and Belarus on one side and the U.S., Germany, Britain and Slovenia on the other.
WATCH BELOW: Paul Whelan's Russian imprisonment reaches 5 years
Whelan, who lived in Novi, was arrested in 2018 in Russia and charged with espionage. He was convicted in 2020 and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
The 54-year-old was a corporate security director and former Marine when he was detained in Moscow in 2018 and then convicted in 2020.
The Whelan family released a statement, which you can read below, after the news that Paul was released.
Whelan family statement on the release of Paul Whelan by WXYZ-TV Channel 7 Detroit on Scribd
Under the deal, Russia released Gershkovich, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal who was jailed in 2023 and convicted in July of espionage charges that he and the U.S. vehemently denied and called baseless; Whelan, a Michigan corporate security executive jailed since 2018 also on espionage charges he and Washington have denied; and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, a dual U.S.-Russian citizen convicted in July of spreading false information about the Russian military, accusations her family and employer have rejected.
Extra Video: Stephanie Liebergen on release of Russian prisoners
The dissidents released included Kara-Murza, a Kremlin critic and Pulitzer Prize-winning writer serving 25 years on charges of treason widely seen as politically motivated, 11 political prisoners being held in Russia, including associates of the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, and a German national arrested in Belarus.
The Russian side got Vadim Krasikov, who was convicted in Germany in 2021 of killing a former Chechen rebel in a Berlin park two years earlier, apparently on the orders of Moscow’s security services.
Russia also received two alleged sleeper agents who were jailed in Slovenia, as well as three men charged by federal authorities in the U.S., including Roman Seleznev, a convicted computer hacker and the son of a Russian lawmaker and Vadim Konoshchenok, a suspected Russian intelligence operative accused of providing American-made electronics and ammunition to the Russian military. Norway returned an academic arrested on suspicions of being a Russian spy, and Poland also sent back a man it detained.
Thursday’s swap of 24 prisoners surpassed a deal involving 14 people that was struck in 2010. In that exchange, Washington freed 10 Russians living in the U.S. as sleepers, while Moscow deported four Russians living in their homeland, including Sergei Skripal, a double agent working with British intelligence. He and his daughter in 2018 were nearly killed by nerve agent poisoning blamed on Russian agents.
The White House released a statement from Joe Biden that reads, "Today, three American citizens and one American green-card holder who were unjustly imprisoned in Russia are finally coming home: Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kurmasheva, and Vladimir Kara-Murza. The deal that secured their freedom was a feat of diplomacy. All told, we’ve negotiated the release of 16 people from Russia—including five Germans and seven Russian citizens who were political prisoners in their own country. Some of these women and men have been unjustly held for years. All have endured unimaginable suffering and uncertainty. Today, their agony is over. I am grateful to our Allies who stood with us throughout tough, complex negotiations to achieve this outcome— including Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Turkey. This is a powerful example of why it’s vital to have friends in this world whom you can trust and depend upon. Our alliances make Americans safer. And let me be clear: I will not stop working until every American wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world is reunited with their family. My Administration has now brought home over 70 such Americans, many of whom were in captivity since before I took office. Still, too many families are suffering and separated from their loved ones, and I have no higher priority as President than bringing those Americans home. Today, we celebrate the return of Paul, Evan, Alsu, and Vladimir and rejoice with their families. We remember all those still wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world. And reaffirm our pledge to their families: We see you. We are with you. And we will never stop working to bring your loved ones home where they belong.
Sen. Gary Peters released a statement on Thursday that reads, "Today is a joyous and long overdue day for Paul, his family, and all who have been working tirelessly to get him back home to Michigan. For the past several years, I have worked with Administration officials, my colleagues, and Paul’s family to press for his release, and I’m beyond relieved that today marks the end of this unimaginable nightmare for Paul and his loved ones. Michigan welcomes him home with open arms.”
Sen. Debbie Stabenow released a statement that says, "Wonderful news today! After more than five years, Paul Whelan is coming home. I know the past years have been excruciating for Paul and his family. I’m so glad they will be seeing Paul soon. Thank you to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for your incredible work to bring these Americans home.”
Congresswoman Debbie Dingell released a statement that says: “I’m incredibly thankful and relieved to learn that after years of wrongful imprisonment, both Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich are in American custody and on their way home. Their detainment has been an affront to due process, international law, and human rights, and we have never given up hope or stopped working for one moment to ensure their release. Paul is a Michigander who lived in Novi before his imprisonment, and his parents still live in my district. I have become friends with them and Paul's siblings as I have worked with them and I have seen how difficult this has been, and know how tireless they have been in their efforts to bring him home. I’m thankful to the Biden Administration and everyone who has remained committed to securing their freedom, and hope they are reunited with their families as soon as possible. Now we must give those who have been released and their families the time and space they need to recover and heal from their experiences.”
Rep. Tim Walbert also released a statement that reads: "I’m overjoyed to hear of reports that Paul Whelan and Evan Gershkovich are coming home. Paul’s parents, Ed and Rosemary, were constituents of mine and have spent nearly six agonizing years wondering if they’d ever get to see their son again. Paul’s siblings, Elizabeth and David, have done everything in their power to bring him home and never lost hope, even during the dimmest days. Paul and Evan are innocent Americans who have been wrongly detained simply to increase the Kremlin’s geopolitical bargaining power."
