Russia releases ex-Marine Robert Gilman as family feared for his life
Russian President Vladimir Putin pardoned former U.S. Marine Robert Gilman, 32, who was serving a sentence at a Voronezh penal colony, on humanitarian grounds. He boarded a plane home on Monday after relatives said his condition had grown dire.
Russian authorities have released 32-year-old former U.S. Marine Robert Gilman, who had been serving a sentence at a penal colony in the Voronezh region. According to Reuters, President Vladimir Putin pardoned him on humanitarian grounds. Washington had urged Moscow on August 7 to free the American so he could receive treatment at home.
Gilman's relatives had grown increasingly alarmed about his health. He had complained of torture and forced injections of mind-altering substances, and family members said he had been in a dissociative stupor since June. He was reportedly being fed through a tube, and his sister said she feared he might be close to death.
Journey home
According to Reuters sources, Gilman boarded a State Department plane bound for Washington Dulles Airport on August 11. One source at the agency said they had seen the former prisoner walking and talking.
Gilman's Russian defense attorney, Irina Brazhnikova, initially told the Interfax news agency she had no information about a possible release but did not rule it out, adding that she still had not been permitted to see her client, who she understood remained hospitalized — he had been transferred to the psychiatric ward of a civilian hospital in early July. Kremlin special representative Kirill Dmitriev later confirmed Gilman's release.
Gilman was one of at least 10 Americans held in Russia. In May 2025, Reuters published a list of nine U.S. citizens Washington wanted returned as part of a possible prisoner exchange with Moscow, which included Gilman's name.
