Russian national freed by US in prisoner swap arrives in Moscow

Russian national Alexander Vinnik arrived in Moscow after being released as part of a prisoner swap between Russia and the US a day earlier, state media reported late Thursday.

In an interview with the Russian state news agency RIA-Novosti, Vinnik said he arrived at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport and that he was already home with his family.

He went on to thank "everyone" for his release, including both Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump.

"I want to thank everyone. The President. First of all. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin. (Foreign Minister Sergey) Lavrov. Our chief diplomat. Everyone… And I can also thank Trump. Well, in general, without him, it probably would have been difficult," Vinnik said.

He said he arrived in Moscow on an American special flight via Poland.

Earlier, Vinnik's lawyer, Arkady Bukh, had told the Russian state news agency TASS that his client arrived by plane in Türkiye, from where he was sent on another flight to the Russian capital.

Vinnik was taken into custody in Greece in 2017 at Washington's request on charges of cryptocurrency fraud.

He was convicted by a court in France, where he was extradited to in 2020 on money laundering charges and sentenced to five years in prison. He also pleaded guilty before a US court last May for conspiracy to commit money laundering.

Russia and the US confirmed a prisoner exchange Wednesday between the two countries, in which American teacher Marc Fogel, who was behind bars in Russia since 2021, was released in return for Vinnik.