A U.S. citizen arrested in Russia earlier this month on drug smuggling charges has been released from Russian custody.
Kalob Wayne Byers, a 28-year-old individual, was arrested on February 7 at Moscow’s Vnukovo airport for allegedly carrying cannabis-infused marmalade in his luggage, as discovered by customs officers. Byers was accompanied by his Russian fiancée on a trip from Istanbul, who was also detained by authorities.
At the time, it was uncertain if Byers’ fiancée, known as Naida Mambetova in Russian reports, had been released. She was subjected to pre-trial detention under similar drug-related accusations.
Russian officials stated that Byers had made an effort to sneak a substantial quantity of drugs into the country. Consequently, he was arrested and faced charges of drug smuggling, an offense that could lead to a maximum of ten years behind bars.
Russian prisoner Alexander Vinnik, left, was swapped for American teacher Marc Fogel, right. (Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images/Aaron Schwartz/CNP/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Fogel was detained at a Russian airport in August 2021 when traveling to work at a school in Moscow. He was sentenced to 14 years behind bars for possession of drugs, which his family said was medically prescribed marijuana.
He was released and flown back to the U.S. earlier this month in an exchange that included returning Alexander Vinnik, a Russian cryptocurrency expert who faced Bitcoin fraud charges in the U.S., to Russia.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
