Stephen Hubbard’s Son Says He Was Experiencing Fear During Prison Separation

A brief call before release

Coleman said Hubbard sounded better on their one-minute call before his departure from St. Petersburg than he had in May 2025. Witkoff was present, leaving little chance for a private conversation.

Family lost contact

Attorney Martin De Luca said that when his team began representing Hubbard in February 2025, neither the family nor the U.S. Embassy knew exactly where he was being held. The U.S. government had classified Hubbard as wrongfully detained.

Questions about the allegations

Hubbard, a U.S. citizen, had been imprisoned for more than four years after Russian authorities accused him of fighting for Ukraine. De Luca said his team interviewed people who knew Hubbard and examined his circumstances before the invasion.

The attorney said investigators found no evidence Hubbard had served in Ukraine’s military or was physically able to do so at about 70 years old. Coleman said his father may have erred by staying in Ukraine as Russian forces advanced, but did not blame him for what happened.

Diplomacy and political response

De Luca and Coleman credited the Trump administration’s diplomatic engagement with Moscow for securing Hubbard’s freedom. De Luca said he did not believe engagement would encourage further detentions, arguing that dialogue had helped free several Americans.

After Putin granted Hubbard’s release, Witkoff called the Russian president a “humanitarian,” drawing swift criticism from Republican and Democratic lawmakers. Putin is wanted by the International Criminal Court over alleged war crimes involving the deportation of Ukrainian children, and Russian forces have faced accusations of widespread abuses.