The mother of a U.S. Marine veteran held captive in Russia told Newsmax on Monday that her son looks "wonderful," "strong," and "healthy" in recent footage of him released publicly by Russian state television.
"He looks wonderful, in that, he's alive," Bunny Drueke told "The Record" with Greta Van Susteren about her son Alexander Drueke. "He was able to talk. It's the video I play over and over again every night before I go to bed.
"He looks strong and healthy in it. I didn't see any obvious wounds, so that was good."
The 39-year-old Alexander Drueke was captured alongside fellow U.S. veteran Andy Tai Ngoc Huynh by Russian forces after coming under fire in northeastern Kharkiv earlier this month.
The two were allegedly serving as volunteers for Ukraine at the time of being captured. Bunny Drueke claimed the two were not serving in combat roles, and instead, she said the two were just weapons training.
His aunt Diana Shaw told Van Susteren that Alexander Drueke had informed his family he was "going dark," meaning cutting off all communication, for several days as the war raged in his stationed area. Four days later, they were informed he had gone missing.
"A couple of days later, the videos started surfacing," Shaw said.
Bunny Drueke confirmed the State Department has been in touch with the family "every day" about the status of her son, adding that just this weekend, "they heard from Alex himself."
"It seems that the Donetsk People's Republic has him there at their detention center, and they are agreeable to discussing some kind of way to get him back home – he and Andy," Bunny Drueke said.
About NEWSMAX TV:
NEWSMAX is the fastest-growing cable news channel in America!
© 2023 Newsmax. All rights reserved.