Amir Hekmati, a former Marine who has been held in Iran for two years, sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry reportedly on September 1, underscoring that he has endured "miserable prison condition," adding that he believes Tehran is holding him hostage for a possible prisoner exchange in the future, CBS News reported.
"This is part of a propaganda and hostage-taking effort by Iranian intelligence to secure the release of Iranians abroad being held on security-related charges," Hemkati wrote in the letter that the British newspaper The Guardian said had been was smuggled from the prison.
Greg Romano, a family spokesman, told the Associated Press that his sister Sarah, authenticated the letter, and that the letter contained her brother's handwriting.
The AP sent an email to the State Department seeking a comment. The U.S. has already expressed outrage and said that Hekmati was detained in the Muslim country on false espionage charges since his 2011 arrest. His family has said he traveled to Iran merely to visit his grandmothers.
In a statement late month, the State Department called for Hekmati's release.
Iran accused him of being a spy with the CIA, and was tried, convicted and sentenced him to death. His arrest by Iran's Intelligence Ministry accused him of receiving training at U.S. bases in neighboring Afghanistan and Iraq.Iran's Supreme Court ordered a retrial last year.
An Iranian-American, Hekmati was born in Arizona, and grew in Michigan.
"It's time for Amir to be released. It's time for him to come home to Michigan, to his family. My brother has committed no crime," His sister said in a family statement.
"More than two years in detention, much of which was spent in solitary confinement, is far too long. He has never been a spy for any country or entity or person. They have punished him enough. We hope Iran's new President Rouhani and his new government recognize this point."
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