Ana Paula Alminhana Maciel is the first Greenpeace activist to be released from jail since the group tried to board a Russian oil rig in September, the Associated Press reported.
The first of the 30 to leave the jail after being given bail, Maciel left a St. Petersburg court on Wednesday before a pre-trial hearing holding a sign that said "Save the Arctic," according to the AP.
Maciel, who is from Brazil, was the 18th detainee granted bail this week by the Russian courts, but is the first to be able to leave. The other 17 have been granted jail but have not been released and it is not clear when the 17 granted bail will be released, according to the AP.
Russian courts said earlier this week the detainees granted bail would be held in fear they will flee, according to the AP.
The hearings on Wednesday also ended with the Captain of the ship, Peter Wilcox, being granted bail after the courts agreed to free up to 12 people this week, the AP reported.
Collin Russell, the Australian Greenpeace activist who was denied bail on Monday, has a scheduled hearing in February, which will allow prosecutors to detain him until then, according to the AP. Since the court announced it would release all suspects whose trial hearings are approaching, so Russell's fate may change.
Russell, who was the radio operator on the ship, has the first bail hearing and Greenpeace lawyer said an appeal would be filed to secure his release, the AP reported. There are no bail hearings scheduled for the remaining 12 detainees yet.
Aside from Captain Wilcox, the courts decided on Wednesday to release Faiza Oulahsen and Mannes Ubels of the Netherlands and Britain's Alexandra Harris and Kieron Bryan. Bail for each defendant has been set at $61,500.
