PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The family of Marc Fogel , a Pennsylvania man imprisoned in Russia, said on Friday that they’re one step closer to freeing him after he received a ” wrongfully detained ” designation from the United States government.
Three years after Fogel was sentenced in Russia to 14 years in prison, there’s newfound hope the Butler County native and Oakmont teacher will return home after the U.S. State Department designated him as wrongfully detained in October.
Fogel’s mother, Malphine, and his sister, Anne, haven’t stopped pushing for his release since he was detained in Russia in 2021 for trying to enter the country with medical marijuana prescribed for chronic back pain.
“We have more hope now than we have ever,” Malphine Fogel said. “I think God’s tired of hearing his name because so many people have prayed for him and are praying, and I think that it really helps.”
“We’re closer than we ever have been,” Anne Fogel said.