Russian authorities have released 74-year-old U.S. national Stephen Hubbard, who in October 2024 was sentenced by the Moscow City Court to six years and 10 months in prison on charges of “participating as a mercenary in an armed conflict on the side of Ukraine.” The release became known during the Oct. 21 meeting between Vladimir Putin and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff.
Russian state-owned news agency RIA Novosti reports that Witkoff thanked Putin for Hubbard’s release. Putin stated that the American was already at Pulkovo Airport in St. Petersburg.
According to the Russian investigation, Hubbard had lived in Ukraine since 2014, and in February 2022 he joined the territorial defense in Izium. On April 2, 2022, the American was captured by Russian forces. Hubbard’s sister told American media that he had worked as an English teacher in several countries and had come to Ukraine to teach as well.
This past August, Russia released 32-year-old U.S. citizen Robert Gilman, a former Marine who had been in custody since January 2022. Vladimir Putin approved his pardon “for humanitarian reasons.” U.S. President Donald Trump stressed at the time that Moscow had released Gilman unilaterally: “Russia asked for no one in return — No exchange took place.” The released American returned to the U.S.
Gilman had been taken off a Russian train in Voronezh, allegedly over drunken and disorderly conduct. At the police station, according to the investigation, he kicked a police officer in the leg. A criminal case was opened against Gilman for assaulting a public official, and he was subsequently sentenced to 4.5 years in a general-security penal colony. Gilman was later handed two more sentences for allegedly assaulting employees of the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN). In total, the American was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
