US citizens arrested in Russia for hemp rubber!

US citizens arrested in Russia for hemp rubber!

Moskau, Russland - At Wnukowo Moscow, an American citizen was arrested for the possession of hemp rubber. According to the "Mash" telegram channel, the man supposedly had half a kilo of marijuana in his luggage, which brought him in custody. In Russia, the penalties for drug smuggling are extremely drastic - they can be between five and ten years in prison. However, some reports indicate that the quantity could be exaggerated because it probably refers to the total weight of the gummy bears instead of the actual amount of cannabis.

This arrest happened in a context in which the Kreml is increasingly trying to create political pressure from the arrest of foreign citizens. The incident reflects a common practice in which western tourists are used as a "fowage deposit" for possible prisoner exchange negotiations. It is particularly interesting that this incident is in the shadow of the recent prisoner exchange between the United States and Russia, in which the American Marc Fogel was released, as Tagesschau . Fogel was convicted of drug smuggling in 2021 when he was discovered at Moscow Airport Marijuana and cannabis oil. He served a 14-year sentence under the accusation of taking these substances for medical purposes to treat his migraines.

The negotiations on Fogel's release have been the first high-ranking trip of a US representative to Russia for years. The deputy US specialist for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, played a central role in this exchange. The White House regarded this step as a "sign of good will" on the part of Russian authorities in the middle of the tense geopolitical situation. However, it remains unclear which concessions the United States made in the context of this exchange. Observers explain that such exchanges in the past were often linked to similar cases in which western citizens were arrested under questionable preliminary walls to get criminals in exchange.