Trevor Reed has been hospitalized but is in ‘high spirits’ after his return to Texas on Thursday after being freed in a prisoner swap with Russia.
Reed’s family told Good Morning America on Friday that they spent a few hours with the former Marine at the hospital yesterday.
‘It’s excellent – considering all he’s been through,’ Reed’s sister said, ‘He’s telling stories, he’s flirting with the nurse staff.’
It is not clear why he has been hospitalized, but it is believed to be due to a hunger strike he had been waging in Russia to protest his solitary confinement.
Footage posted online showed the moment Russian forces escorted Reed out of a dark-colored van Wednesday morning
Reed looked emaciated and frail in images from the prisoner swap, and appeared to need support from personnel involved in the swap to stand and walk.
Reed’s parents reported in March he had told them he was coughing up blood after being exposed to tuberculosis, and the Russians had not given him adequate medical treatment.
His family told Good Morning America that they were unaware of the specifics of his condition.
‘We don’t have a whole lot of answers yet, he’s getting some testing done,’ his mother said, ‘He’s at a top notch facility getting great care but we won’t know more for a few days.’
Trevor Reed (center in navy shirt) with his mother and father, Texas Rep. August Pfluger and others this morning after arriving back in Texas on Thursday
Trevor Reed arrives back in Texas on Thursday morning. He is shown with Rep. August Pfluger, who helped secure his release
Reed was detained in Russia in 2019. He was accused of assaulting a police officer while visiting his girlfriend in the country – something he has always denied.
After the Reed family plead for their son’s return for years, the U.S. took advantage of the current heightened tensions between the U.S. and Russia to negotiate a prisoner swap.
In return for Reed’s freedom, the U.S. agreed to return Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot serving a 20-year federal prison sentence in Connecticut for smuggling drugs.
Reed’s parents credit President Biden above all else for their son’s return.
This is the moment former US Marine Trevor Reed was exchanged for convicted Russian drug dealer Konstantin Yaroshenko during a prisoner swap that took place at a Turkish airport on Wednesday
‘Ultimately it was President Biden,’ Reed’s father said on Good Morning America, ‘We had always said, ‘if we can just speak to the man he would make this happen’ and that’s exactly what happened. He did everything that he said he would do. he was amazing. We can’t thank him enough. We believe he may have saved Trevor’s life.’
Dramatic video footage from Wednesday showed the moment the U.S. swapped Reed for Yaroshenko.
The clip was shot at a Turkish airport and saw Yaroshenko and Reed pass each other on the tarmac as security personnel from the U.S. and Russia handed their prisoners over to each other.
The scene has been likened to a Cold War prisoner exchange made famous by the 2015 Tom Hanks movie Bridge of Spies.
Paula and Joey Reed are shown on Wednesday outside their home in Granbury, Texas, after receiving the news that their son would be freed
Trevor was celebrating with his girlfriend, Alina Tsybulnik, and some of her co-workers the night he was arrested. He was accused of assaulting a police officer – a claim he denies
The film tells the story of U.S. officials’ efforts to free Francis Gary Powers, a spy plane pilot shot down over the Soviet Union in 1960, culminating in his exchange for KGB spy Rudolf Abel on the Glienecke Bridge in Germany.
Reed’s release has refocused attention on two other Americans who remain in Russian prison, Paul Whelan and WNBA star Brittney Griner.
Whelan was convicted of espionage charges in Russia in 2020 after an arrest in 2018. He denies the charges and has been in jail for 40 months.
In exchange for his release, the United States released Konstantin Yaroshenko (above), a smuggler serving 20-years in prison in Connecticut
Griner was jailed in February after being caught with a marijuana pen at a Russian airport.
The State Department says it is a ‘top priority’ to bring her home.
The Reeds told Good Morning America that they and Trevor will be advocating for their release.
‘Our hearts go out to them. We can only imagine how disappointed their loved ones are that they didn’t get to come home,’ Reed’s mother said, ‘When we spoke with Trevor that was the very first thing he said to us. He said ‘I feel terrible that Paul is still there and I am here.’ He said when he gets better he’s going to start advocating for them right away. That’s how we feel. We’re going to start advocating for everyone to come home.’
WHAT ABOUT US? JAILED AMERICANS PAUL WHELAN AND BRITTNEY GRINER ASK WHY THEY HAVEN’T BEEN FREED
Paul Whelan has been in jail in Russia since 2018
After Reed’s release was announced yesterday, jailed Americans in Russia asked why they were being left behind and not rescued too.
Paul Whelan was convicted of espionage charges in Russia in 2020 after an arrest in 2018. He too is a former Marine and he denies the charges. He has been in jail for 40 months.
He told his parents in a statement obtained by CNN: ‘Why was I left behind? While I am pleased Trevor is home with his family, I have been held on a fictitious charge of espionage for 40 months.
WNBA star Brittney Griner was arrested in February
‘The world knows this charge was fabricated. Why hasn’t more been done to secure my release?’
Fans of Brittney Griner, the WNBA star who was jailed in February after being caught with a marijuana pen at the airport, also demanded her release.
The State Department says it is a ‘top priority’ to bring her home.
She was detained at the outbreak of the war in Ukraine.
Source: dailymail
