SAN ANTONIO – A day after three United States citizens were released in a Russian prison swap, they arrived in San Antonio for reintegration treatment.
San Antonio’s Brooke Army Medical Center (BAMC) has long been the place where released prisoners of war begin their reentry process. The military designed the BAMC program to support detainees or hostages in their return to normalcy.
KSAT spoke to military reporter Sig Christenson about the trio’s release. You can watch the interview in the video player below:
The program will now house Evan Gershkovich, Paul Whelan and Alsu Kurmasheva, who were recently released as part of the largest U.S.-Russia swap in post-Soviet history, as reported by the Associated Press.
KSAT has compiled a list of some of the most high-profile individuals who have come through the program.
Evan Gershkovich
A reporter for the Wall Street Journal based in the publication’s Moscow bureau, Gershkovich was detained in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg while on a reporting trip in March 2023.
He was the first Western journalist arrested on espionage charges in post-Soviet Russia, according to the Associated Press.
Russian authorities alleged that Gershkovich was working with the Central Intelligence Agency and gathering information about a facility producing military equipment, the AP reported.
Before his release as part of Thursday’s 24-person prisoner swap, Gershkovich had spent 16 months in a Russian prison on espionage charges.
Gershkovich arrived in San Antonio early Friday morning to begin his reintegration process.
Paul Whelan
American businessman and former Marine Paul Whelan had been in Russian custody for over five years before his release as part of Thursday’s prisoner swap.
Arrested in 2018 while attending a friend’s wedding in Moscow, Whelan was jailed on alleged espionage charges. He was sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison on the charges in 2020.
Whelan’s name was brought into the conversation of release in December 2022, during the United States’ prisoner swap to bring home women’s basketball star Brittany Griner.
Whelan arrived in San Antonio early Friday morning.
Alsu Kurmasheva
A Russian-American radio journalist for the U.S. government-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Kurmasheva had been in Russian custody since October 2023 .
Kurmasheva, who was based in Prague, was accused of “spreading false information” about the Russian army and had been sentenced to 6 1/2 years in late July, according to the AP.
Kurmasheva was part of a 24-person prisoner swap on Thursday. She arrived in San Antonio early Friday morning.
Brittney Griner
American women’s basketball player and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner was arrested on drug-related charges at a Moscow airport in February 2022.
Russian authorities detained Griner after finding vape cartridges were found in her luggage. At the time of the arrest, Griner was playing in Russia, something she had done for several years in the winter.
Months of talks between top U.S. and Russian officials were straining; however, Griner was eventually released into U.S. custody in December 2022.
She arrived in San Antonio on Dec. 9, 2022, to begin her reintegration process.
Travis King
Travis King is an American Army private who crossed the border into North Korea in July 2023, becoming the first American detained in North Korea in nearly five years.
On July 10, 2023, after serving time in a South Korean prison for assault charges, King was scheduled to be sent home to Fort Bliss, Texas, to face additional disciplinary actions and a discharge from service.
King fled from an airport and eventually crossed the border into North Korea, the AP reported.
After two months, North Korean officials in Pyongyang announced King would be expelled and was released into U.S. custody.
He was flown to San Antonio and entered BAMC’s reintegration program on Sept. 28, 2023.
Paul Rusesabagina
Paul Rusesabagina, the man who inspired the film “Hotel Rwanda,” came through San Antonio after his release on terrorism charges.
During a visit to Dubai in 2020, Rusesabagina disappeared and resurfaced days later in Rwanda in handcuffs, according to the AP.
In 2021, Rusesabagina was sentenced to 25 years in prison after a conviction in Rwanda on terrorism charges.
Rusesabagina came to BAMC’s program after he landed in Houston in March 2023.
Bowe Bergdahl
A former U.S. Army soldier who was held captive and tortured by the Taliban for five years spent time in San Antonio as part of his reintegration process.
Bergdahl was charged with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, according to the AP, after leaving his post in Afghanistan in 2009.
After five years in captivity, Bergdahl was returned to the U.S. in May 2014 as part of a prisoner swap for five Taliban leaders being held at Guantanamo Bay, AP reported.
After his release, Bergdahl was flown to San Antonio, where he received treatment in 2014.
A judge vacated Bergdahl’s conviction in July 2023.
The Associated Press compiled a list of Americans behind bars in Russia. To view that story, click here.
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