American accused of smuggling drugs taken into Russian custody

A court in Russia ordered the 30-day detention of a U.S. citizen suspected of drug smuggling, Moscow courts press service reported Saturday, per the Associated Press.

Kalob Wayne Byers, 28, was apprehended by customs officials at Vnukovo airport in Moscow during a baggage inspection.

On Friday, Russia's Federal Customs Service confirmed that a U.S. citizen had been detained.

Russia's Interfax news agency quoted the country's Federal Customs Service as saying that the U.S. citizen was arrested at Moscow's Vnukovo airport on Feb. 7 after arriving from Istanbul for allegedly attempting to bring a large quantity of illegal drugs into Russia.

A Russian Telegram channel, Mash, which is connected to security services, stated that the American could be sentenced to up to seven years in prison if found guilty.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Trump administration announced it had secured the release of Marc Fogel, an American schoolteacher who has been detained in Russia on drug charges since his arrest in 2021.

National security adviser Mike Waltz said in a statement Tuesday that special envoy Steve Witkoff was leaving Russian airspace with Fogel after the U.S. negotiated an exchange with Russia. Waltz did not say if the U.S. or an ally released someone in return.

But the Kremlin said early Wednesday Fogel’s release came in conjunction with the Trump administration granting freedom to a Russian citizen held in a U.S. prison — though they were not identified.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told reporters the former prisoner would be named after they reach Russian soil in the next several days, per AP.

The Hill has reached out to the State Department for comment.

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