Why was Trevor Reed in Russia? Ex-US Marine released in prisoner swap

Former US Marine Trevor Reed has been released from Moscow prison. Russia. He was released in a prisoner exchange after serving three years in Russia.

On Wednesday, April 27, US and Russian officials announced that Trevor had been swapped out for Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, as reported by BBC.

Trevor was arrested in Moscow in 2019, but why was he there in the first place? Here’s what you need to know.

• TRENDING: Meet DJ Soda as the South Korean star claims American Airlines ‘kicked’ her from the flight.

Why was Trevor Reed in Russia?

Trevor Reed traveled to Moscow in 2019 to visit his Russian girlfriend Lina Tsybulnik and learn Russian, reports the BBC.

The 30-year-old US Marine from Texas was arrested in the summer of that year. Russian officials claimed he assaulted a police officer after attending a party. Al Jazeera writes.

Trevor pleaded not guilty but was convicted and sentenced to nine years in prison in 2020.

Reed was reportedly drunk on the night in question and claimed he had no recollection of the incident.

The Ex-US Marine was exchanged for the convicted Russian drug dealer Konstantin Yaroshenko. Yaroshenko was serving a 20-year prison sentence in the United States.

Statements regarding his release

Trevor’s family and President Joe Biden have issued statements regarding Trevor’s release from prison.

“Today our prayers were answered and Trevor is safely on his way back to the United States,” Trevor’s parents, Joey and Paula, and his sister Taylor said in one Joint Statement.

In a statement released Wednesday, Biden said, “Today we welcome Trevor Reed home and celebrate his return to the family who have missed him dearly.”

“The negotiations that allowed us to bring Trevor home required difficult decisions that I do not take lightly. His safe return is a testament to the priority my administration places on bringing home Americans who are being held hostage and wrongfully detained abroad.”

Where did the exchange take place?

Trevor’s family said their son was swapped for Konstantin Yaroshenko in Turkey. It is said that a plane from the Russian Federal Security Service has traveled to the Turkish capital Ankara.

Yaroshenko is a Russian pilot arrested in Liberia for human trafficking crimes. He was serving a 20-year sentence in the US for drug trafficking.

Yaroshenko had been held in a federal prison in Connecticut since his extradition to the US.

In other news: Why was Trevor Reed in Russia? Ex-US Marine released in prisoner swap