In June 2020, Whelan was sentenced to 16 years of hard labor in a Russian prison for espionage, in a trial that he has argued was politically motivated and heightened tensions between the United States and Russia. Russian media say Whelan has been formally indicted for spying and could face up to 20 years in prison. Who is Paul Whelan, the ex-US Marine jailed in Russia? Paul Whelan Dishonorable Discharge: What Charges Made To Marine Against Bad Conduct? He joined the Marine Reserves May 10, 1994,and was an administrative clerk and administrative chief. It was a flat, abrupt end to a spy trial that had taken just a handful of closed hearings. The details of the charges against Whelan from a special court-martial two years later, which resulted in his discharge for bad conduct, add to an increasingly Sentenced to a high-security prison, Paul Whelan won't be leaving Lefortovo just yet. A Twitter post by Benny Johnson states that President Biden chose Brittney Grinner in the prisoner swap over Paul Whelan. [3][14] Whelan was arrested in Moscow last week. Nine months earlier, the UK had accused Russia of poisoning Sergei Skripal, a former double-agent, on the streets of Salisbury. Officials have now confirmed that Whelan holds U.S., British and Irish citizenship. The US Embassy and government have been very vocal about Whelan's detention. Defence lawyers disclosed some details of the men's relationship early on in the case, including how the American had visited his friend's house in Sergiev Posad outside Moscow for "saunas and kebabs" the winter before his arrest. [8] His work with Kelly Services and BorgWarner gave Whelan contacts with the U.S. intelligence community, federal agents and foreign embassies. [4], Whelan lived in Novi, Michigan, prior to detainment in Russia.[49]. I was arrested for a crime that never occurred, he said in a phone interview with CNN from the remote Russian penal colony where he is being detained. officer Whelan stated that he was in Russia to attend a friends wedding, and he knew that the flash drive contained some holiday photos he had received. When we go to a meeting, prisoners were hidden from each other," Berg describes the lonely routine of life inside the K-shape jail, whose tall outer walls now butt-up against Soviet apartment blocks. The Marine Corps released Whelan's service record, showing that hewas convicted in a 2008 court-martial on charges related to larceny. Whelan, his family and the U.S. government have repeatedly stated that the charges are baseless and that he was framed. Paul Whelan's lawyers have now confirmed that he was being watched for some time and his communications monitored. After the Salisbury poisoning in early 2018, more than 100 Russian diplomats identified as intelligence agents were expelled from embassies around the world in a co-ordinated act of protest. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. In messages home from Moscow in January 2018 - a free holiday to use up his air miles - the American described visiting restaurants with his agent-friend, as well as the museums of the Kremlin and even a British pub. It's clear that the US government has no concessions that the Russian government will take for Paul Whelan. James B. Hoke/U.S. Whelan went on to seek out more Russian friends, using the country's social networking service VK among others. On his latest trip, in December 2018, he was in Moscow for the wedding of a fellow ex-Marine to a Russian woman. Relations between Moscow and London are at a low point in the wake of Britains allegations that Russian military intelligence agents were behind the nerve-agent poisoning of a Russian former double agent and his daughter in the British city of Salisbury in March. Biden called those espionage allegations totally illegitimate charges., Biden said his administration has not forgotten about Paul Whelan, and promised to keep negotiating in good faith for his release., Meanwhile, Whelan said Thursday that he is greatly disappointed that the government has not done more to secure his release, especially as the four-year anniversary of my arrest is coming up. Paul Whelan, the U.S. citizen and former Marine detained in Russia on espionage charges, was reportedly convicted of attempting to steal roughly ten grand from Uncle Sam while deployed to Iraq in 2006, By (Reuters) - Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine serving a 16-year sentence in a Russian penal colony on espionage charges, did not figure in a prisoner exchange on "The porridge, some days it goes direct to the toilet," Frode Berg wrote to me from northern Norway of life in the FSB prison. Ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman Jr. met with Whelan on January 2, 2019, while Whelan was in Russian custody. Since his first visit in 2006, Mr Whelan made a number of other trips to Russia and developed an in-depth knowledge of the country. Russia has angrily denied involvement in the poisonings. As described in a 2008 appeal that was denied, Whelan received this sentence for, among other things, attempted larceny, false statements, and dereliction of duty: A military judge sitting as a special court martial convicted the appellant [Paul N. Whelan], consistent with his pleas, of attempted larceny, three specifications of dereliction of duty, making a false official statement, wrongfully using another's social security number, and ten specifications of making and uttering checks without having sufficient funds in his account for payment He was sentenced to 60 days restriction, reduction to pay grade E-4, and a bad-conduct discharge. [45], Whelan's brother David Whelan approved of the decision to "make the deal that was possible, rather than waiting for one that wasn't going to happen. Check Wiki to Know About Solana Valley NFT (Sep 2021) Token price & How To Buy! He served 14 years in the Corps before he was discharged. ", Whelan breezily told his parents after one Facetime chat with the Russian. This article will convey all the necessary information on Paul Whelan. Mr Whelan continued to work for Kelly Services, being promoted to senior manager of global security and investigations in 2010. American Paul Whelan was discharged from the Marines "We are not looking for an exchange, we are looking for justice for Paul," US Ambassador John Sullivan insisted, emerging from the verdict at Moscow City Court to a wall of microphones and cameras. Reuters. But the espionage case was based entirely on Whelan's ties to one officer, with all the evidence gathered in 2018 shortly before his arrest.