U.S. Man Who Lived in Ukraine Freed in Russian Prisoner Swap
Suedi Murekezi was grabbed by Russian troops in the Kherson region last June.
via Telegram/Andrii Yermak
An American man taken captive by Russian forces in Ukraine over the summer has been released as part of a prisoner swap, Ukrainian authorities said Wednesday. Andrii Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, announced the news on Telegram. He said 64 Ukrainian troops who fought in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions were now on their way home. “We also managed to free a U.S. citizen that helped our people, Suedi Murekezi,” Yermak said. Murekezi had moved to Ukraine prior to the full-scale invasion and settled down in Kherson in 2020. He told his family after his capture in June that he had no involvement in fighting or protests but was grabbed at random by Russian troops while in search of gas for his car. Russian authorities had accused him of “inciting ethnic hatred” by taking part in pro-Ukrainian rallies.
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