Russia has released detained Pennsylvania teacher Marc Fogel, the ...

Marc Fogel, the Oakmont native who has been held captive in Russia since August 2021, is on his way home, the Trump administration announced Tuesday afternoon.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday evening, Fogel's 95-year-old mother, Malphine Fogel, said that her son was expected to arrive in Washington from Moscow later that night.

She said Fogel called her from the Moscow airport with news of his release earlier in the day.

"I really wondered if I'd get to see him again, and I think he did too," she said.

Fogel credited President Trump with her son's release, as well as U.S. representatives Guy Reschenthaler, Mike Kelly and Chris Deluzio.

"Today, President Donald J. Trump and his Special Envoy Steve Witkoff are able to announce that Mr. Witkoff is leaving Russian airspace with Marc Fogel, an American who was detained by Russia,” said a statement from National Security Advisor Mike Waltz earlier in the day. “By tonight, Marc Fogel will be on American soil and reunited with his family and loved ones thanks to President Trump’s leadership."

Waltz called the release “a show of good faith from the Russians and a sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine.”

The release delivers on a commitment Trump made during the campaign last year, when he spoke with Fogel’s mother about her son’s fate and promised to work to resolve it. The two spoke in Butler, prior to the July 13 rally in which Trump was targeted in a failed assassination attempt.

The news follows months of uncertainty in which other Americans imprisoned inside Russia, among them WNBA athlete Brittney Griner, were released.

Fogel was arrested at an airport in Moscow for carrying a small amount of medical marijuana that he used to treat chronic back pain. He was convicted of drug smuggling and possession, and faced up to 14 years in a Russian prison — though American authorities deemed him as “wrongfully detained” late last year.

It was not immediately clear whether there were any other exchanges involved in Fogel’s release. But Reschenthaler was quick to hail the deal Tuesday. In a statement, he called the event “a day of celebration, thankfulness, and gratitude knowing our fellow Pennsylvanian will soon be back on American soil with his family.”

Reschenthaler noted that Fogel “spent 1,255 days locked away in a Russian penal colony under the Biden-Harris Administration” but was released after the election of Trump “whose leadership freed Marc in just 22 days.”

Officials previously shared concerns about Fogel’s worsening health while in Russian custody. In a letter last summer, outgoing U.S. Senator Bob Casey noted Fogel had spent 101 days in hospitals while in Russian custody, including a three-week stay in July.

“Partly due to neuropathy in one of his feet, Marc has fallen multiple times,” Casey wrote. “Every fall heightens the risk of a broken hip or other severe injury that he will struggle to recover from in prison.”

Other elected officials from across the state expressed gratitude for Fogel's release, including:

• Gov. Josh Shapiro, who thanked "those at the White House who made [Fogel's] release possible," as well as Fogel's wife, Jane, his mother and his children "who never, ever gave up." In a statement, Shapiro said: "After more than 3 years in Russian captivity, I join his family, our federal partners, and all of his fellow Pennsylvanians in welcoming Marc Fogel home — exactly where he belongs."
• U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly, who in a statement, thanked Trump for securing Fogel's release and reuniting him with his family. “When President Trump met with Marc Fogel’s mother, Malphine, in Butler on July 13, 2024, he pledged to do everything he could to bring Marc home safely. Today, President Trump, Secretary [of State Marco] Rubio, and the Trump administration have fulfilled this promise," Kelly said. "... For years, I have met with the Fogels and have strongly advocated for Marc’s release. He is a Butler County native and Malphine is one of my constituents. Today is a great day for the Fogel family, who will be reunited in Western Pennsylvania once again.”
• U.S. Sen. Dave McCormick, who joined Kelly and other members of the Pennsylvania delegation following the announcement. “I am thrilled that Marc Fogel is finally coming home after years of being wrongfully held in Russia," he said. "I have been working with the administration on this since day one and I’m grateful to President Trump and Secretary Rubio for delivering on their commitment to free Marc. As I told Marc’s Mom, Mafa, when we spoke in August, we had to do everything possible to get Marc home, and it is a blessing that this day has finally come.”
• U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, who said Fogel's release "is long overdue" and commended Trump and Witkoff for their efforts to arrange it. "I know all of Pennsylvania, especially his family, will be welcoming him back with open arms."
• U.S. Rep Chris Deluzio, who credited both parties for keeping a spotlight on Fogel’s case. "He'll have an advocate in me and I expect our senators as well," said the Democrat, who represents Fogel's hometown of Oakmont. Deluzio said he is waiting to hear from Fogel's family about his medical condition but said, "If there are needs of his coming out of his detention, he'll have guys like me to have his back in Washington, to push to make sure our government is there for him."