We Don’t Leave Americans behind
So why are Americans Robert Gilman, Andre Khachatoorian, David Barnes, Chuck zimmerman, Aleksandr Antonov and Olga Jezler in Russian prison?
THE AMERICANS LEFT BEHIND NEED TO COME HOME NOW
President Trump has helped free at least 105 American hostages and wrongful detainees in just his second term so far.
But six Americans have been left behind in Russia, and they need President Trump’s help to finally come home.
5 have been held in Russia for over a year, 3 for over 4 years.
Their families have written the following letter to the only man who can bring them home:
President Trump
The Americans Left Behind
Robert Gilman
a Marine set up in Russia … again
Arrested January 17, 2022, sentenced to 4.5 years for “assaulting a police officer,” after falling ill on a train and accidentally kicking a police officer. Even the unharmed police officer asked for the charges to be dropped.
Andre Khachatoorian
tricked ‘In Transit’ in Moscow
Arrested December 27, 2021, during a Moscow layover with a licensed, secured firearm in his checked luggage, sentenced to 8 years for improper registration of a firearm.
David Barnes
a father fighting for his kidnapped sons
Arrested January 13, 2022, after ex-wife who kidnapped his sons from Texas to Russia made charges of abuse that had already been disproven twice by Texas officials, sentenced to 21 years hard labor.
Chuck Zimmerman
Abducted In International Waters
Detained on June 17, 2025, by the Russian Navy while sailing in international waters, Chuck Zimmerman is a Navy veteran who was fulfilling his lifelong dream to sail the world. He was sentenced to five years of imprisonment on gun-running charges after voluntarily declaring a firearm onboard his boat for self-protection.
OLGA JEZLER
just wanted to Support Her sister Through Cancer
Arrested on June 27, 2022, Olga Jezler had been traveling back and forth between New York and Russia to support her sister and niece after her sister’s breast cancer diagnosis. She was arrested three days after declaring CBD supplements, which are legal in Russia, and sentenced to 10 years in a Russian prison.
Aleksandr Antonov
GrandPA In A Gulag
Arrested March 5, 2025, while returning to the United States after attending to family in Ukraine and business in Russia-occupied Crimea.
An American Freed
Ksenia Karelina
Freed April 11, 2025 after 439 days.
Arrested January 27, 2024, charged with state treason for donating $51.80 to US nonprofit that supports elderly and children impacted by the war in Ukraine while she was a US citizen and living in Los Angeles, sentenced to 12 years in prison.
The August 1 multilateral exchange that brought home three American citizens from Russia was a masterful act of diplomacy. The Americans Left Behind initiative seeks to use the momentum of that success to bring home four other Americans who are detained in Russia.
Each of these individuals is a US citizen who has been detained in Russia. In each case, there is evidence that suggests that the person is actually innocent and is being victimized by the Russian legal system—including through the deprivation of due process—at least in part because they are Americans. In some cases, Americans in the Russian legal system are coerced to plead guilty because they know they will not get a fair trial, and they are threatened with long prison sentences if they do not plead.
Our first goal is to have each of these four Americans designated as a wrongful detainee under the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act.
If there is another exchange—whether this year or next—we want to ensure these four Americans have an opportunity to return home to their families and to freedom.