Russian authorities have released Kalob Byers, the 28-year-old American who was arrested this month for carrying cannabis-infused gummies into the country, the Associated Press reports.
Byers and his fiance Naida Mambetova, a Russian national, were arrested on February 7 by customs officials at Vnukovo Airport in Moscow after authorities allegedly found cannabis-infused gummies and marmalade products in Byers’ luggage. The pair faced drug smuggling charges carrying up to 1 million rubles (about $11,000) in fines and up to ten years imprisonment.
Byers was released to the U.S. embassy on Monday, however, ahead of talks on Tuesday between Moscow and Washington about ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which began in 2022 when Russia illegally invaded Ukrainian territory. A spokesperson for the Kremlin said Moscow plans the talks to cover restoring relations between Russia and the U.S., “so certain events can be viewed in this context.”
Members of the Byers family announced his release in a February 16 Facebook post and an unnamed U.S. official confirmed the news, the AP reported. The Byers family also announced that Mambetova has been released and is with her family.
The incident unfolded remarkably fast in comparison to other Americans who were recently detained by Russian authorities