Prisoner serving time in southern Ill. part of Griner exchange
MARION, Ill. (KFVS/AP) - A prisoner serving time in the Heartland is part of the high-profile exchange between the United States and Russia to free WNBA player Brittney Griner.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons confirmed on Thursday, December 8 that Viktor Bout is no longer in custody at the federal prison in Marion, Illinois.
Nicknamed “the Merchant of Death,” Bout was one of the world’s most wanted men before his arrest in 2008.
He spent the last 10 years serving a sentence in Marion, but left the prison on Thursday.
According to the Associated Press, Russia freed WNBA star Brittney Griner as the U.S. released Bout.
The deal was the second in eight months amid tensions over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Copyright 2022 KFVS. All rights reserved. The Associated Press also contributed to this story.
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