Northeast
Don't forget about Marc Fogel, another American wrongfully detained in Russia
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During his State of the Union address, President Biden outlined his vision for the year ahead and his priorities for the future. In his remarks, the president did not mention Marc Fogel, the American teacher imprisoned in Russia since 2021.
Sadly, Fogel’s omission from the address is yet another missed opportunity for the Biden administration to give the Pittsburgh-area resident – a man we collectively represent – a similar spotlight so many other wrongfully detained Americans have rightfully received.
For congressional leaders who have worked on his case for years, Marc is very familiar. So is his mother, Malphine Fogel, who is approaching her 95th birthday. She and her family continue to meet with lawmakers on Capitol Hill to inform them of Marc’s situation.
Marc Fogel, right, with his family (Photos courtesy Ellen Keelan and Lisa Hyland)
If this case is new to you, here is Marc’s story. For nearly 36 years, Marc taught history courses at schools attended by children of U.S. diplomats in Colombia, Venezuela, Oman and Malaysia. For the past decade, he also taught in Russia.
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On Aug. 14, 2021, Marc was detained for possession of medical marijuana used to treat his severe back injury. As a result, he is currently serving a 14-year sentence in a Russian prison.
With Marc’s condition, this could be a death sentence.
Marc’s charge is similar to that of WNBA player Brittney Griner. Griner was arrested at the same Russian airport nearly six months after Marc was arrested.
Due in part to her public platform, in December 2022, the Biden administration swapped Griner for notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, the man infamously known as the “Merchant of Death.” Bout was convicted in 2011 of conspiracy to kill American citizens.
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We are thankful Brittney Griner is home with her family and believe Marc should be entitled to the same attention from the State Department.
While the State Department played a critical role in Griner’s release, the department has been less than helpful in returning Marc to his family.
Under federal law, Marc meets the established criteria to be designated as “wrongfully detained” by the State Department. It’s a designation critical to securing his freedom. Although Marc has yet to be classified as wrongfully detained after more than two-and-a-half years in prison, Griner was designated within three months after her arrest.
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When pressed on this lack of progress toward a designation, State Department officials have been either unable or unwilling to provide us with a concrete explanation. This lack of clarity has increased our call for answers and resulted in the introduction of The Marc Fogel Act last year.
This bipartisan legislation would amend the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act to require more transparency from the State Department to Congress on how wrongful detainment determinations are made.
It’s past time for the State Department to declare Fogel as wrongfully detained by the Russian government. They refuse to act yet offer no explanation for their inaction. In fact, Marc is rarely even a part of the administration’s public dialogue when it comes to Americans imprisoned in Russia.
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Our commonsense legislation would allow Congress to receive critical information not only about Fogel and why he has not received this declaration, but also about other Americans who may be imprisoned or held hostage abroad in the future.
Lastly, we implore the State Department to consider the personal toll Marc’s imprisonment has taken on the Fogel family. The lack of acknowledgment and designation of Marc by the department has not only impacted him, but also his mother, wife, two sons, and his entire family.
Marc deserves to be home in Pennsylvania with his mother and family. They have gone nearly 1,000 days without him.
After the release of Griner, the Biden administration stated they are “continuing to work to bring home every American who continues to endure such an injustice.” We hope the administration follows through. As Marc’s representatives, we remain deeply concerned about our constituent’s health, safety and freedom.
Marc Fogel deserves to be home. So do Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan and all other Americans who are wrongfully detained in Russia. They must not be forgotten.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE BY REP. MIKE KELLY
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM REP. GUY RESCHENTHALER
Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, a Republican, represents Pennsylvania’s 14th District. Rep. Christopher Deluzio, a Democrat, represents Pennsylvania’s 17th District.
The congressmen represent districts in the Pittsburgh region, where the Fogel family resides, and lead legislation advocating for the State Department to designate Marc Fogel as wrongfully detained.
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Northeast
Venezuelan leader Maduro, wife arrive at Brooklyn detention facility after capture by US forces
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Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, arrived at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, Saturday evening after being captured by U.S. forces at their South American compound earlier in the day.
Maduro is charged with narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices against the U.S.
The indictment also lists his wife and son as defendants.
A DOJ plane containing captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife lands at Stewart Air National Guard Base in Newburgh, N.Y., Saturday. (WNYW)
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President Donald Trump shared a photo of Maduro after his capture aboard the USS Iwo Jima, though he and his wife were not clearly seen when they landed aboard at Department of Justice plane at Stewart Air National Guard Base in upstate New York late Saturday afternoon.
Operation Absolute Resolve follows a series of U.S. military strikes on suspected drug vessels allegedly linked to the Venezuelan regime in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific.
The Venezuelan government said in a statement the attack was carried out to seize the country’s oil and minerals and was an “attempt to impose a colonial war to destroy the republican form of government and force a ‘regime change,’ in alliance with the fascist oligarchy.”
Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro is led by officials while in custody from a DOJ airplane Saturday in upstate New York. (ABC Affiliate WABC via Reuters)
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Trump warned the U.S. is prepared to stage a “second and much larger attack,” confirming U.S. forces remain in position.
“We’re there now, and we’re going to stay until such time as the proper transition can take place,” Trump said.
Police patrol the West Side Heliport in New York City Saturday ahead of the expected arrival of ousted Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Maduro and his wife arrived in the U.S. after his capture by U.S. forces in Caracas. (Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images)
The operation comes nearly 40 years after the U.S. military last removed a leader in Latin America.
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Panama dictator Manuel Noriega was successfully ousted in 1989, though it brought with it long-term challenges in stabilizing governance.
While Venezuelan celebrations began in other countries, Fox News reported those inside the country were stockpiling food amid fears of instability.
Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips contributed to this report.
Read the full article from Here
intentionally and knowingly combined, conspired, confederated, and agreed together and with each other to violate Title 18, United States Code, Section 924(c).
35. It was a part and an object of the conspiracy that NICOLÁS MADURO MOROS, DIOSDADO CABELLO RONDÓN, RAMÓN RODRÍGUEZ CHACÍN, CILIA ADELA FLORES DE MADURO, NICOLÁS ERNESTO MADURO GUERRA, a/k/a “Nicolasito,” a/k/a “The Prince,” and HECTOR RUSTHENFORD GUERRERO FLORES, a/k/a “Niño Guerrero,” the defendants, and others known and unknown, during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime for which they may be prosecuted in a court of the United States, to wit, for MADURO MOROS, CABELLO RONDÓN, and RODRÍGUEZ CHACÍN, the controlled substance offenses charged in Counts One and Two of this Superseding Indictment, and for FLORES DE MADURO, MADURO GUERRA, and GUERRERO FLORES, the controlled substance offense charged in Count Two of this Superseding Indictment, knowingly used and carried firearms, and, in furtherance of such crimes, knowingly possessed firearms, and aided and abetted the use, carrying, and possession of firearms, to wit, machineguns that were capable of automatically shooting more than one shot, without manual reloading, by a single function of the trigger, as well as destructive devices, in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(c)(1)(A) and 924(c)(1)(B)(ii). (Title 18, United States Code, Sections 924(o) and 3238.)
36.
FORFEITURE ALLEGATIONS
As a result of committing the controlled substance offense charged in Count One of this Superseding Indictment, NICOLÁS MADURO MOROS, DIOSDADO CABELLO RONDÓN, RAMÓN RODRÍGUEZ CHACÍN, the defendants, shall forfeit to the United States, pursuant to Title 21, United States Code, Sections 853 and 970, any and all property constituting, or derived from, any proceeds the defendants obtained, directly or indirectly, as a result of the offenses, and any and all property used, or intended to be used, in any manner or part, to commit,
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Jackets shook off a sluggish start to dispose of Boston College, 65-53.
Georgia Tech guard Chas Kelley III finishes a layup past Boston College’s Marko Radunovic on Saturday, Jan. 3 at McCamish Pavilion. (Danny Karnik/Georgia Tech Athletics)
Trailing late in the second half Saturday at McCamish Pavilion, Georgia Tech needed a spark. Cole Kirouac delivered.
The 7-foot freshman found himself unguarded inside the arc on the left side of the court. Without hesitation he bolted toward the rim, took flight and slammed home the ball with two hands to tie the score at 46 with seven minutes left on the clock.
Kirouac’s dunk brought many of the 5,978 to their feet and changed the energy in the building while the Yellow Jackets threatened to lose to the worst team in the ACC. Instead, Tech took the lead shortly after Kirouac’s play and never trailed again in a 65-53 victory.
“Originally, it was just supposed to be a handoff. I saw my man sagging off. I just took one dribble, went up and dunked it,” Kirouac said. “I feel like I was pretty tired in that moment. I feel like that energized me a lot. I think we had energy as a team, but I feel like it probably boosted it a little bit.”
Said Tech coach Damon Stoudamire: “That was a heck of a dunk he had. That ignited us, ignited the crowd. Proud of him and happy for him.”
Saturday’s victory was the 10th of the season for Tech — all 10 have come at home and all 10 have come against opponents which reside in Quadrant 4 of the NCAA’s NET rankings. Per that metric, Boston College was the ACC’s lowest-ranked team at No. 179 going into Saturday.
But the Jackets (10-5, 1-1 ACC), the ACC’s second-worst team in the NET, found themselves in a dogfight for much of the afternoon despite leading by 10 late in the first half. The Eagles (7-7, 0-1 ACC) had momentum on their side and led by four with 9:14 to play before wilting at the end.
Tech guard Lamar Washington flirted with a triple-double by finishing with 17 points, 12 rebounds and five assists. Kowacie Reeves scored 16 and Baye Ndongo had 10 points and eight boards.
Twenty of Tech’s 65 points came from the free-throw line. The Jackets also had 23 fast break points — Boston College had none.
“We’re a good team,” Washington said. “When we play together and we play with confidence and we play how we’re supposed to play, we can — I feel like we can beat anybody in the nation.”
Tech was sluggish and sloppy at the outset, suffering through a field goal drought of 6:04 while missing nine of its first 10 shots. But a Ndongo layup followed by a Kam Craft 3 from the right corner tied the game at 11-all a little less than eight minutes into the fight.
The Jackets began to get a feel for things offensively from there and took their first lead on a Jaeden Mustaf layup at 13-12. Akai Fleming’s powerful finish from the right block 3 1/2 minutes later put the home team ahead 19-15.
Tech had six assists on its first seven made shots at that point.
Fleming’s score began an 10-2 Tech run that also included a Fleming dunk and two Fleming free throws that upped the lead to 27-17.
But the Jackets wouldn’t score the rest of the half and had to settle for a 27-24 lead at the break. The Eagles, despite shooting 9 of 34 from the floor, ended the period on a 7-0 run to close the gap.
“I was actually disappointed the last three minutes of the first half because BC, they’ve played a lot of games where they just rock you to sleep,” Stoudamire said. “You’ll feel like you’re in control of the game and then all of a sudden you lose a rhythm offensively, and then they start scoring some buckets and they hit a bank-shot 3 and you just have all kind of things start happening, and that’s when the game turned. The momentum of the game, it shifted. And we couldn’t find it back offensively.”
A back-and-forth first eight minutes of the second half saw Boston College finally tie the game at 36 before Tech squeaked ahead by four thanks to two Washington free throws and a Reeves layup.
The Eagles responded with a 7-0 run and took the lead on a Donald Hand Jr. 3, and then went up 43-40 on Chase Forte’s layup at the 10:33 mark. Boden Kapke’s putback after a missed free throw gave BC a 46-42 edge 64 seconds later.
That was the last little glimmer of hope the visitors had.
“We couldn’t have won games like this last year,” Stoudamire said. “The way I look at everything that’s happening, I think sometimes people get bent out of shape when you play teams and you don’t beat ‘em by how many points they want you to win by or different things of that nature. We went to Duke and we lost by six. We come back (Saturday) and it was kind of a grimy game.
“But we’ve been playing close games, so we’re seasoned in these games. Doesn’t matter who you play, you’re seasoned in ‘em, and I think that what you’ve seen. You didn’t see no panic with our guys coming down the stretch.”
Hand and Kapke both scored 13 for BC, which shot 18 of 66 from the field and 4 of 29 from long range.
Tech returns to action at 7 p.m. Tuesday against Syracuse (9-5, 0-1) at McCamish Pavilion.
Chad Bishop is a Georgia Tech sports reporter for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
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