An American defense contractor, held captive in Kuwait for 903 days, expressed gratitude for President Donald Trump’s role in securing his release.
Tony Holden shared his appreciation in a video following his release on Wednesday, as reported by Fox News on Friday.
“President Trump, I want to thank you for what you did for me and my family,” Holden remarked, with his loved ones surrounding him.
“I wanted you to know how grateful we are for the support from your team. It’s hard to express fully, but I want you to see the impact you’ve made. I’m a 60-year-old grandfather and father, and honestly, words are tough to find right now. We’re thankful to God for everything. There were many behind the scenes who played a big role in this. I just wanted to share that with you directly. God bless you and your family.”
Holden was arrested in November 2022 at the US Army Base Camp Alifijan while working for a US-based firm named Vectrus.
The arresting officer searched his apartment on base for drugs, though Holden reportedly did not engage in drug use or alcohol consumption.
After checking another off-base apartment where the family lived with no results, they supposedly followed a Fox article that led them to take Holden, along with his wife and three-year-old daughter, to the desert.
The family stated that Holden was later compelled to sign a confession written in Arabic to safeguard his family. Drug tests conducted on him returned negative, yet he was nonetheless accused of drug possession, trafficking, and attempting to flee the country. His family claims he did not receive legal representation.
During his trial, the judges ultimately recognized the case’s falseness since the officer presented a conversation with Holden in English, despite the officer not being fluent. Regardless, Holden received a five-year prison sentence, and it was later revealed that his confession was coerced, according to his family.
In March, Kuwait released six Americans, including imprisoned military veterans and contractors, as reported by Breitbart News, though U.S. officials have not classified the group as unjustly detained.
Jonathan Franks, a consultant in such matters, noted that “these Americans spent years in prison due to misguided policies that left them abandoned overseas prior to President Trump’s administration.”
According to the Associated Press, Kuwait has released around 20 US detainees in the last two months, being recognized as a non-NATO ally of the United States.
Additionally, the report mentions that “Kuwait has also detained numerous American military contractors on drug-related charges.”
“Criticism has been directed at the Kuwaiti police for fabricating evidence and accusations against individuals, a practice not uncommon in an authoritarian regime overseen by a hereditary chief.”
