Russia frees 74-year-old American Stephen Hubbard captured in occupied Ukraine

By Jennifer Hansler, Ivana Kottasová, CNN

(CNN) — Stephen Hubbard, an American who had been imprisoned in Russia for more than four years on charges of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine, was heading to the US late Wednesday after he was freed by Moscow following a direct plea from President Donald Trump.

Hubbard, a 74-year-old retired teacher, was captured in occupied eastern Ukraine during Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 and accused of fighting for Kyiv in what his family and the State Department said were fabricated charges.

Trump posted pictures of Hubbard holding an American flag inside an aircraft and said he was “coming home”.

Hubbard will fly Washington, DC, to be reunited with his family before heading to a military facility in Texas, where he will take part in the US government program meant to help former detainees re-acclimate.

Late Wednesday, Reuters news agency ran live video of what it said was a jet believed to be carrying Hubbard landing at the military facility in San Antonio, Texas. There was no immediate confirmation from officials of his return to US soil.

His release in Russia was announced as US special envoy Steve Witkoff met President Vladimir Putin for talks aimed at advancing peace efforts in Ukraine.

Witkoff thanked Putin for Hubbard’s release, calling Russia’s president – who is subject to an International Criminal Court arrest warrant and has clamped down on opposition at home – a “humanitarian.”

Hubbard spent decades abroad teaching English. He moved to the eastern Ukrainian city of Izyum in 2014, which was occupied by Russian forces at the start of its war against Ukraine in 2022.

A video shared with CNN showed Hubbard meeting Witkoff and Russian negotiator Kirill Dmitriev at the Pulkovo airport in St. Petersburg on Wednesday. Hubbard was seen in the video standing and walking on his own. His family previously expressed concerns over his health. Witkoff told Hubbard, who had spent years in Russian prison, that Putin “sends you blessings and wishes you good things.”

While Trump said the US was not required to give Russia anything in return, Hubbard’s release comes as the president faces accusations of cozying up to Moscow at the expense of Ukraine.

The Trump administration’s relationship with Kyiv has been strained in recent weeks, as Ukraine accused the US of limiting intelligence sharing on incoming Russian missiles, slowing down vital Starlink services and delaying weapon supplies.

Exacerbating Kyiv’s frustrations, Trump waived some sanctions against Russia last week – a move which drew bi-partisan criticism in the US.

Posting on social media on Wednesday, Trump said that “out of respect for President Trump” Russia didn’t require anything in return for Hubbard’s release. But in a separate post later, he said “if sanctions would have been placed, certainly those negotiations would have come to a complete and total halt.”

Hubbard’s son Joseph Coleman thanked Trump and other US officials for securing his father’s release. Trump spoke with Hubbard shortly after the former schoolteacher was freed, and the president posted a picture of Hubbard and his family aboard the plane home on his social media page.

“Never once did we waver as we prayed for success in these negotiations, and we must acknowledge that this humanitarian move by President Putin in this matter is deeply appreciated,” Coleman said.

Coleman said that he was able to speak briefly with his father after his release, describing him as being in “good spirits.”

“He didn’t talk about his time in prison. He just expressed gratitude that he was out,” Coleman told CNN. “He was very happy that I was going to be able to meet with him here in DC and that Thomas, my half brother, his other son, would be here.”

There are no plans for Hubbard to meet with Trump immediately when he arrives due to Hubbard’s health, his US-based lawyer, Martin De Luca, told CNN, but they could possibly meet in the coming weeks “when he’s feeling better.”

Other Americans still in Russian prisons

Hubbard is the latest American to be freed from Russian detention.

In August, Robert Gilman was released from Russian detention for humanitarian reasons amid severe concerns about his health. The Marine veteran was severely emaciated when he arrived back in the US on a specialized medical plane. The organization advocating on his behalf said Gilman had been tortured in Russian detention.

But many other Americans remain imprisoned in Russia:

• Andre Khachatoorian was detained in 2021 and sentenced to eight and half years for arms trafficking – charges he denies. Khachatoorian, an American of Armenian descent, was arrested while traveling from the US to Armenia via Moscow.
• David Barnes was arrested in 2022. According to the Foley Foundation, which advocates for American hostages and wrongful detainees, he was detained after his ex-wife, who kidnapped his sons from Texas to Russia, made allegations of abuse that had already been disproven twice by Texas officials.
• Aleksander Antonov, who came to the US as a Soviet refugee and has since become a naturalized US citizen, was arrested in 2025 when attempting to cross the border from Russia into Estonia. According to the Foley Foundation, he was accused of “anti-Russian sentiment,” the Foley Foundation said. He was sentenced to six years for inciting terrorism and extremism.
• Olga Jezler, a permanent US resident, was arrested for drug trafficking and sentenced to 10 years in prison in 2022. According to the Foley foundation, she was carrying legal CBD oil into Russia for her sister who was struggling with breast cancer and Russian prosecutors deliberately misclassified the substance as hashish oil.
• Chuck Zimmerman, who is described by his supporters as a Navy veteran who was intercepted by the Russian navy while sailing in international waters. He was charged with arms trafficking for having a firearm on board.

A State Department spokesperson said they hope Hubbard’s release “leads to the release of all Americans unjustly held in Russia.”

“This Administration will continue to work for the release of all Americans unjustly detained in Russia,” they said. The spokesperson noted that “there are currently no Americans determined to be wrongfully detained in Russia.”

This story has been updated.

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CNN’s Lauren Kent, Darya Tarasova, Anna Chernova, Arina Porkhovnik, Zahra Ullah and Kevin Liptak contributed to this report.

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