August 1, 2024.
Moscow.
It was dark by the time the flight arrived.
In news footage, you see a Kremlin honor guard with ceremonial bayonets.
The Russians coming home are part of a prisoner swap.
Among them are hackers, an assassin, an arms dealer, dangerous men with notorious pasts.
But there's one group that stands out.
They look like a study in a normal family.
Next door.
Yep, the first lady off the plane is a mom.
Yeah, she has mousy brown hairs.
She's wearing a blue shirt open at the collar, jeans and plimp soles.
And with her is an 11 year old girl.
That's our colleagues Jo Parkinson and Drew Hinshaw.
Her daughter has her hair up and wearing Harry Potter sneakers.
This mum holding her daughter's hand is trailed by her husband and her son.
They walk down the staircase towards this red carpet where the dictator of Russia,
Vladimir Putin, is waiting and he has.
A bouquet of flowers.
The camera shows Putin hugging the mousy woman.