Vinnik spoke about the conditions of his detention in a U.S. prison

Russian Alexander Vinnik, who was released from an American prison, told Izvestia on February 16 about his detention on the territory of the United States.

According to Vinnik, who was detained at the request of the American side in July 2017, when he was vacationing with his family in Greece, said that he had equipment and things seized from him.

"I had various equipment seized, I mean laptop, phones. That's in Greece. And in America, they don't allow you to be in your things, in prison, I mean, for example, what you arrived in, they confiscate it, store it in a warehouse, when you are released they give it to you. In California, they do not give warm clothes for winter," he said.

Vinnik noted that in prison he was allowed to work after a year and a half.

"I worked in the kitchen, in the laundry, there are other projects there," explained the released Russian.

In addition, he told reporters that due to the death of his wife in 2020, he asked to be released to Russia.

"Yes, we tried, submitted documents, a petition. <...> They can not let me go, because there is no guarantee that I will return," - specified Vinnik.

He also said that in the American prison was poor-quality food, which has no vitamins, trace elements, because of which the stomach hurts.

At the same time, Vinnik said that entry to the United States is closed to him for five years.

"Before the law I am clean American, completely. I can once again thank both Vladimir Vladimirovich [Putin], and Sergey [Viktorovich] Lavrov, and all the deputies of our ombudsman, [Tatiana Nikolayevna] Moskalkova, and members of the special services, who are doing invisible work," he concluded.

Vinnik's mother Vera said she had been to Greece more than once, expecting to be received by the country's justice minister. However, she was received by his deputy.

"I was there lying at his feet and begged, begged, let this very thing go, you want, take me away, well take me away, I will sit down," - said the mother of the released Russian and added that she appealed to French President Emmanuel Macron.

More about the situation with Alexander Vinnik and his release - in the plot of "The Final Program with Petr Marchenko" on February 17 at 00:00 on REN TV.

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The release of Vinnik from prison after almost eight years of imprisonment became known on February 12. The Russian arrived in Moscow the next day. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that his return was a joyful event for Russia. Peskov also emphasized the unreasonableness of the Russian's imprisonment. Vinnik himself called his return a surprise and admitted that he missed his homeland.