For the first time since his disappearance, 73-year-old Stephen Hubbard — a retired American schoolteacher — has spoken out from a Russian prison, firmly denying accusations that he served as a mercenary in Ukraine. According to his U.S.-based legal team, Hubbard claims he was forcibly taken from his home by Russian soldiers and had never engaged in combat.
Hubbard was arrested in Russian-occupied Ukraine and later sentenced in October 2024 to nearly seven years in a Russian penal colony. A closed-door Russian court accused him of joining a Ukrainian territorial defense unit and manning a checkpoint during the war — a charge Hubbard now says is completely false.
Despite being convicted and reportedly pleading guilty (a detail relayed by Russian state media), Hubbard’s legal team only confirmed his location this past April — months after his trial. He was found in a prison facility in Mordovia, a remote Russian region notorious for housing other detained Americans.
“He told us immediately, ‘It’s not true,’” said Martin De Luca, Hubbard’s U.S.-based lawyer. “He wasn’t in a military unit. He was taken from his house.”
Hubbard, who previously taught English abroad, had been living in Izium, eastern Ukraine, since 2014 to be with his partner. When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and later seized Izium, Hubbard remained in the city alone. His family lost contact with him shortly afterward and could only confirm his detainment by identifying him in disturbing videos shared on pro-Russian Telegram channels — including footage of him being zip-tied and slapped during what appeared to be a forced interrogation.
His son, Joseph Coleman, recently spoke with him briefly over the phone. “He said, ‘I’m tired of being a slave,’” Coleman told Reuters. “He sounded very low.”
According to the U.S. State Department, Hubbard is officially classified as “wrongfully detained,” making him a priority in any future U.S.-Russia prisoner swap. He is currently the only American held in Russia with this designation, despite at least eight other U.S. citizens also being imprisoned there.
Efforts to secure his release have intensified. De Luca’s legal team began their work in February and have since spoken to Hubbard on three occasions. He is reportedly weak, having endured months in prison conditions likened to those of a prisoner-of-war camp.
The Kremlin confirmed last month that a potential prisoner exchange — involving nine individuals on each side — is under discussion. For now, Hubbard remains in a penal colony in the tiny town of Molochnitsa, about seven hours outside of Moscow.
Meanwhile, his sister Patricia continues to fight for his release, insisting her brother is not the man the Russian government claims. “He’s a pacifist,” she said. “He’s never even owned a gun.”
As diplomatic talks continue, Hubbard’s story is another stark reminder of the rising number of Americans caught in geopolitical crossfires — their lives hanging in the balance.
