California Teenagers Return Home After Being Detained By Russian Authorities
CHICO (CBS13) — Four California teenagers were returned home on Tuesday after they were held and interrogated by Russian Police after being detained at a youth leadership conference.
Sterling Winter made it back from an international adventure few 18-year-olds can match.
"I believe we got caught up in a bigger case than what it should have been," he said. "We never felt unsafe, our safety was never in question, but we were definitely feeling uneasy not knowing who was listening to us and who was following us--we had pictures taken as evidence that was kind of taken in a discrete way."
Winter was with his peers in St. Petersburg, Russia at a youth leadership conference when their visit suddenly took a tense turn. Police detained them while Russian TV cameras rolled.
"We were portrayed as brainwashing Russian students in multiple newscasts," he said.
A judge ruled the group was in Russia on improper visas. They were put on a no-fly list. Eventually the judge allowed them to leave after issuing a small fine.
"The first few hours were the most anxious because we didn't have all the details about what was going on," his dad Scott Winter said.
"We sort of felt confident throughout that it would all work out, and he would come home and it would be fine, but there was always that little doubt that would creep in," his mom Mia Winter said.