00:00A former U.S. Marine imprisoned for four and a half years in Russia has been freed after Russian President
00:05Vladimir Putin issued a humanitarian pardon for the American.
00:10U.S. President Trump said of Robert Gilman in a Truth Social post,
00:14After my discussions with President Vladimir Putin, Russia has agreed to release him, very much on a humanitarian basis.
00:22Gilman served in the U.S. Marines from August 2019 until August 2020 and was traveling aboard a train when
00:30he was taken into custody in January 2022 in Voronezh.
00:34Russian state media reported that he was detained for allegedly kicking a police officer while intoxicated.
00:41Gilman's family has disputed the claim, saying that he was ill when the incident occurred and had kicked the police
00:47officer by accident.
00:48Gilman was incarcerated in a prison roughly 340 miles south of Moscow.
00:53The White House and the State Department had urged Putin to release 32-year-old Gilman so he could undergo
01:00medical treatment in the United States.
01:02U.S. officials confirmed that Gilman was safely aboard a State Department plane flying from Russia to Washington on Tuesday,
01:11August 11th.
01:12Trump has prioritized returning Americans detained abroad during both his presidencies.
01:18More than 100 people have been released since he returned to the White House for his second term in January
01:242025.
01:25Gilman's release was not part of an exchange and the U.S. has provided no concessions to Russia in return,
01:31at least not yet.
01:32It was a goodwill gesture, one Trump official is reported to have said.
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