Marc Fogel Net Worth 2025 Wikipedia, Age, News, Wife and Children. Who is Marc Fogel? Biography, Wikipedia, Net Worth, Age, News, Wife and Children, Nationality, Religion, Released News updates are discussed here.
Who is Marc Fogel?
Marc Fogel, a 63-year-old American teacher, was arrested in August 2021 at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport for carrying 17 grammes of medically prescribed marijuana. Sentenced to 14 years for drug smuggling, his case drew international attention. After three and a half years in Russian detention, he was released in a deal brokered under US President Donald Trump’s administration.
Marc Fogel Wikipedia | Biography
Marc Fogel, an American history teacher who was detained in Russia for over three years, has been released and returned to the United States.
His release, facilitated by the Trump administration, marks a significant diplomatic development that could influence future negotiations between Washington and Moscow.
Fogel was arrested in August 2021 at Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow for carrying medically prescribed marijuana and was sentenced to 14 years in a high-security Russian prison on charges of drug smuggling.
Marc Fogel released News
Fogel’s release was overseen by Steve Witkoff, Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East, who made an unannounced stop in Moscow to retrieve him.
While specifics regarding the terms of the agreement remain unclear, Trump described the deal as “very fair, very reasonable,” adding that Russia treated the US “very nicely.” The president also suggested that this release could be a stepping stone toward ending the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Mr Fogel's sister, Anne Fogel, earlier told the BBC that her brother, who was detained in Russia in 2021, was moved last Wednesday from a penal colony in Rybinsk. She said the family had known his release was a possibility but also that the negotiations were "very tenuous".
After landing on US soil, the White House posted on X: "PROMISES MADE, PROMISES KEPT!" along with a picture of Mr Fogel.
In a statement obtained by CBS News, the BBC's US news partner, his wife Jane and sons Ethan and Sam said: "This has been the darkest and most painful period of our lives, but today, we begin to heal."
Mr Fogel was arrested at an airport for illegal possession of cannabis in 2021.
He was charged with carrying a small amount of medical marijuana, which had been prescribed in the US, and given a 14-year prison sentence.
Mr Fogel's legal team thanked Trump for his role in the negotiation and criticised what they called the "bureaucratic inaction" of the Biden administration.
"President Trump secured Marc's release in just a few weeks, wasting no time in taking decisive action to bring Marc home," a statement from his lawyers, also sent to CBS, said.
Mr Fogel was not classed by the US government as wrongfully detained until December 2024, despite beginning his sentence in 2022.
His family had tried to push former President Joe Biden to secure his release, and were left disappointed when he was left out of prisoner exchanges in 2022 and 2024.
US basketball star Brittney Griner, who was arrested in Russia on a similar charge of cannabis possession in 2022, was freed in an exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout 10 months later.
Subsequently, the Biden administration secured the release of three more Americans last year as part of the biggest prisoner exchange between Russia and the West since the Cold War. The Americans freed were Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, US Marine veteran Paul Whelan, and Russian-American radio journalist Alsu Kurmasheva.
Anne Fogel told the BBC at the time of feeling "betrayal" when she learnt that her brother was not included in the prisoner exchange - which Biden had lauded as a "feat of diplomacy".
Mr Fogel, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, was a teacher at the Anglo-American School of Moscow. He had previously worked as a diplomat at the US embassy there.
While in prison, he reportedly taught English to fellow inmates.
It is unclear if the US released someone in return for Mr Fogel.
Marc Fogel Net Worth
Marc Fogel’s net worth is estimated to be between $500,000 and $1 million. His income primarily comes from his work in education, where he held various high-level positions. Additionally, Marc’s work as an advocate for prisoner rights and social justice has provided him with a platform that has allowed him to maintain a comfortable lifestyle. However, his recent legal challenges have put a strain on his finances.
Marc Fogel Age
- Born: Marc Hilliard Fogel (July 28, 1961 (age 63) Butler, Pennsylvania, U.S.
- Citizenship: United States
- Detainment
- Country: Russia
- Detained: August 15, 2021
- Conviction: Drug trafficking
- Sentence: 14 years in prison
- Time held: 3 years, 6 months, and 27 days
- Released: February 11, 2025
Life and career
Fogel is from Pennsylvania, United States. He attended the Indiana University of Pennsylvania.[5] He was a history teacher at international schools in Colombia, Malaysia, Oman, Mexico and Venezuela. He had lived and worked in Russia since 2012, teaching at the Anglo-American School of Moscow.
Wife and Children
Marc Fogel is married to his wife Jane. The couple shares two sons namely Ethan and Sam.
After his release from Russia, his wife Jane and sons, Ethan and Sam said in a statement “This has been the darkest and most painful period of our lives, but today, we begin to heal”
Starting in 2012, Marc Fogel and his wife, Jane, taught at the Anglo-American School in Moscow. In the summer of 2021, Fogel told his wife that he would retire after one more year teaching in the Russian capital, according to The Washington Post. It was upon their return to Moscow from a summer vacation that Fogel was detained.
Why was Marc Fogel arrested?
On Aug. 14, 2021, Fogel was taken into custody at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport on a cannabis possession charge. Fogel and his family have said the cannabis was used to treat his chronic back pain.
His case has drawn comparisons to that of WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner, who was arrested in February 2022 at a Russian airport for possession of vape cartridges containing cannabis oil. She pleaded guilty and was sentenced to nine years at a labor camp. In December of the same year, she was released in a prisoner exchange.
Fogel was declared wrongfully detained by the State Department under former President Joe Biden in December. Fogel's family and lawmakers petitioning to free Fogel from Russian custody were frustrated that he wasn't considered wrongfully detained sooner.
Efforts to bring Fogel home
Fogel's family petitioned the U.S. government to free the longtime teacher and was critical of the Biden administration and State Department's response in recent years.
Malphine Fogel filed a lawsuit against then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the U.S. Department of State in July for not designating Fogel as wrongfully detained, reported local television station WTAE.
The effort to free Fogel was also taken up by lawmakers, especially Pennsylvania Rep. Mike Kelly. Kelly and a group of bipartisan lawmakers in December 2023 wrote a letter to Blinken urging the government to classify Fogel as wrongfully detained, saying he met at least six of the 11 established criteria for the classification.
Kelly and Pennsylvania representatives Chris Deluzio and Brendan Boyle also introduced the Marc Fogel Act, which would have required the State Department to submit documents and communication to Congress about how it determines whether a U.S. citizen is being held wrongfully.
Nationality
American
Fogel is from Pennsylvania, United States. He attended the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He was a history teacher at international schools in Colombia, Malaysia, Oman, Mexico and Venezuela.
For Marc Fogel’s family, the excitement over the U.S. government finally declaring the Oakmont history teacher wrongfully detained by Russia is tempered by the reality that he’s still not home.
In mid-October, President Joe Biden called Fogel’s wife to tell her his administration was still working to obtain Fogel’s release from a Russian prison where he’s been held for more than three years for having medical marijuana.
A week later, Fogel’s family learned that what they’d fought so long for had finally happened: The U.S. Secretary of State had finally declared him wrongfully detained, a designation that allows an American special envoy to negotiate for his release and permits the family to access much-needed resources.
The news buoyed their spirits, giving them hope that the 63-year-old prisoner might be let go soon.
But after weeks of waiting — and keeping his new status under wraps — the family remains faced with the reality that another Christmas has gone by without Fogel’s release.
“These negotiations are very fraught with pitfalls,” Fogel’s sister, Anne Fogel, 60, of Missoula, Mont., told TribLive on Friday. “It’s going to take time.”
A State Department spokesman said Friday that the U.S. government tried to get Fogel included in a massive, multi-nation prisoner swap that freed several Americans in Russia on Aug. 1 but was unable to do so.
“The United States has been working to secure Marc Fogel’s release for some time,” the spokesperson said.
‘Long, hard slog’
Fogel’s family has been pushing for years to have him receive the label of “wrongfully detained.” They even filed a federal lawsuit in June against the State Department and Secretary of State Antony Blinken alleging the government was treating Fogel differently than others who had been held in Russia and released, including WNBA Star Brittney Griner.
“The main goal for the family is to make sure that he is kept a top priority for the government, that they continue to try to broker some sort of deal with the Russians,” said attorney Edward Phillips, who has been working with Fogel’s family.
Late Thursday, Phillips filed a notice of voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit in federal court given the new designation.
Biden emphasized to Fogel’s wife, Jane, that securing her husband’s release was a top priority, according to his sister.
“He assured her Marc is prioritized and they were working diligently,” Anne Fogel said. “The channels are open, and they’re discussing things.”
The family hoped keeping the designation and ongoing negotiations quiet could help speed the process to ensure Fogel’s release. But as time wore on, they decided this week to go public.
“It’s a relief to be able to be open about it,” Anne Fogel said. “It was long in coming.”
On Nov. 1, she said, Roger D. Carstens, Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, and other State Department staff traveled to Pittsburgh to meet with Jane Fogel and one of the couple’s sons. Malphine Fogel, Marc’s mother and his staunchest advocate, also attended.
At that meeting, Anne Fogel said, the officials described the work the special envoy does and what it will look like when Fogel eventually returns home.
Anne Fogel said they don’t know why it took more than three years to get the designation, and the State Department spokesperson would not say.
“We’re not in a position to complain,” Anne Fogel said. “We’re looking to build bridges.”
Her mother was thrilled when they received the news.
“It’s very fulfilling,” Anne Fogel said. “It’s been an incredible amount of work. This is Mt. Everest for us as a family.
“It’s been a very long, hard slog.”
Since the designation, Anne Fogel said her brother expressed relief to know that he’s been prioritized.
Fogel, then 60, was arrested Aug. 14, 2021, after returning to Moscow from Pennsylvania. He was about to begin his 10th — and final — year teaching American history at the Anglo-American School there.
When he landed at Sheremetyevo Airport that day, he had medical marijuana with him, prescribed following three back surgeries and decades of pain. He was arrested, tried and convicted of possessing less than an ounce of medical marijuana. He was sentenced to serve 14 years in a Russian maximum-security penal colony.
Fogel was moved to the facility several hours from Moscow in fall 2022. Since his incarceration, he’s been hospitalized at least four times.
His family and local congressional delegation for years pushed the government to label Fogel as wrongfully detained — a designation set by the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act of 2020.
There are 11 criteria, including that the person is being detained substantially because of American citizenship and as a pretext for an illegitimate purpose.
Fogel met at least six of the criteria, his advocates have argued.
Being labeled wrongfully detained brings with it significant resources for the family, including medical care and mental health services for Fogel and financial support upon his return. It also provides funding for two family members to travel to Washington, D.C., to advocate for their loved one.
“The designation brings about a lot of resources and a lot of government support. It’s hugely important for bringing him home,” Phillips said. “Keeping him a top priority is certainly an important thing to do in these coming weeks.”
Marc Fogel Parents
Marc Fogel with his mother Molphine Fogel.
