Ex-cellmates describe beatings and cold endured by freed American in Russian jails

Stephen Hubbard spent 54 months in Russian custody before his release on October 23, 2026. Dmytro Khyliuk and Ihor Shyshko, two Ukrainians who shared cells with the 74-year-old former English teacher, say they witnessed guards physically abusing him throughout that period.

Khyliuk, a journalist, met Hubbard at Novozybkov prison in Bryansk in September 2022. He recalls that officers targeted Hubbard from the start. "They came during inspections and were asking: in which cell is the American? And then they used obscene words," Khyliuk said. Shyshko, a captured Ukrainian soldier, noted that Hubbard was forced to learn Russian and recite prison rules he could not read. Shyshko reported seeing guards beat Hubbard on the legs, back, and arms, and shock him with a stun gun. The soldiers also said Hubbard was denied food, medical care, and kept in the cold.

Khyliuk described the physical deterioration of Hubbard during their time in adjacent cells. Broken windows and bitter cold made the facility difficult to inhabit, with detainees huddling in bathrooms for warmth. Shyshko said Hubbard's condition worsened after a transfer to Pakino prison, where the man had no unbroken skin on his knees or feet. Shyshko bandaged Hubbard at the medical centre because the doctor refused to treat him. The prisoners described a daily routine of beatings, forced running, and stress positions, along with a diet of porridge, bread, and potatoes.

Khyliuk alleged that prison staff hid Hubbard from visiting International Red Cross personnel shortly after the transfer to Pakino. "They saw only what was shown to them and they were happy with that," Khyliuk said. The ICRC stated that it asks to see every individual when granted access and continues talks with conflict parties on the issue. Shyshko also described a handler setting a dog on prisoners to bite them.

Hubbard was captured in April 2022 in Izyum, Ukraine, and sentenced to six years and 10 months in Moscow. The Kremlin released him on the same day US special envoy Steve Witkoff met Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg. Witkoff called the Russian president a "humanitarian," and US President Donald Trump said he had asked Putin to free Hubbard in a phone call the previous week. Khyliuk, who returned to Ukraine in August 2025, described the timing as "shameful PR" and noted that "it was not his war." Shyshko said he hopes the perpetrators will face justice, stating, "Evil must be punished, and so it will be."