Russia releases seriously ill US citizen Robert Gilman, who alleged torture in prison

Russia has released former US marine Robert Gilman, 32, from prison after his health condition sharply worsened in recent weeks. The US State Department confirmed on Tuesday that he was released on "humanitarian grounds," emphasizing that no prisoner exchange occurred.

Reuters reports that Gilman was pardoned by Russian President Vladimir Putin. He had been held in Russian custody since January 2022, with the White House and State Department both pushing for his release so he could receive medical treatment in the United States.

Health rapidly deteriorated

Gilman had most recently been held in a prison in Voronezh, from where he was transferred to a hospital. His family says he has been in a state of dissociative stupor since June. He had previously alleged he was tortured and injected with mind-altering substances. Media reports indicate Gilman is now aboard a flight bound for the United States.

Repeatedly convicted over prison assaults

Gilman was detained in January 2022 and sentenced that October to 3.5 years for beating a police officer, an incident that occurred after he was removed from a train while intoxicated for causing a disturbance. He was later convicted of further assaults while incarcerated — against a prison inspector, an investigator and a prison guard — receiving an eight-year-and-one-month sentence in October 2024. Last year his sentence was extended to 10 years following a new conviction for assaulting prison guards.

Gilman's father, who had emigrated from the USSR, wrote in an article for the Boston Globe that the charges against his son were false.