Jailed Marine Trevor Reed lands in US after prisoner swap with Russia
Marine veteran was exchanged Wednesday for a Russian prisoner serving time in the U.S.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}An airplane carrying Marine veteran Trevor Reed has landed in Texas early Thursday following his release from Russian jail this week in a prisoner swap, according to photos posted by Rep. August Pfluger, R-Texas.
The U.S. announced Wednesday that Reed was exchanged for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian drug trafficker who was serving a 20-year federal prison sentence in Connecticut.
"This is the moment we have all been praying for. WELCOME HOME, Trevor Reed!" Pfluger said in a tweet.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}U.S. Marine Trevor Reed landed in Texas, April 28, 2022, after a prisoner swap between the U.S. and Russia. (Rep. August Pfluger)
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Reed's parents, Joey and Paula, spoke with reporters outside their home Wednesday, revealing that they spoke with their son for a few minutes while he traveled by plane from Russia.
Paula Reed said she had a "panic attack" worrying that her son might remain in Russia throughout the summer. The pair then asked for privacy.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"He looks terrible to us," Joey Reed said. "As his parents we know he does not look well. He is very thin, walking strange."
"We want to make sure his health is good," the family added, saying he would likely go to a military hospital upon his return.
U.S. Marine Trevor Reed is pictured after landing in Texas on Thursday morning. (Rep. August Pfluger)
The family also issued a statement Wednesday morning in which they thanked the various personalities and politicians involved in securing their son’s freedom from a Russian jail.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"While we understand the interest in Trevor’s story – and as soon as he’s ready, he’ll tell his own story – we’d respectfully ask for some privacy while we address the myriad of health issues brought on by the squalid conditions he was subjected to in his Russian gulag," the statement added.
The family highlighted the plight of families suffering in similar circumstances, such as the Whelan family, whose son Paul Whelan has remained in Russian custody for over three years.
Reed, a now-30-year-old U.S. Marine Corps veteran and former presidential security guard, had been living in Russia in the summer of 2019 when was arrested by Russian police and accused of assaulting a police officer. He had been celebrating in a park with his longtime Russian girlfriend and her colleagues at the time, Joey Reed told Fox News Digital earlier this month.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Trevor Reed, charged with attacking police, stands inside a defendants' cage during his verdict hearing at Moscow's Golovinsky district court on July 30, 2020. (Dimitar DILKOFF / AFP)
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Reed was sentenced to nine years in prison, though his family has maintained his innocence and the U.S. government has described him as unjustly detained.
Following a public trial, Reed was convicted in July 2020 of assaulting police officers and was sentenced to nine years in prison before his release Wednesday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News’ Peter Aitken and Stephanie Pagones contributed to this report.