'Mockery of justice': British-American man sentenced to 16 years in Russian prison for spying
A Russian court has sentenced a British-American citizen to 16 years in prison, raising speculation of a potential prisoner swap between Russia and the United States.
Russian courts have convicted several foreign nationals of spying in recent years but the case of Paul Whelan is the first for a British or an American citizen since the Cold War, putting a further stain on ties between Russia and those countries.
Judge Andrei Suvorov on Monday convicted Whelan, 50, of spying and sentenced him to 16 years in a high-security prison, a year and a half after the former US Marine was detained in an upscale Moscow hotel.
Prosecutors claimed during the trial which was held behind closed doors that Mr Whelan was caught red-handed with documents containing state secrets. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
“This is all a political theatre,” Mr Whelan, a bespectacled man dressed in a grey jumper, said from the defendant’s glass cage upon hearing the sentence, adding that he did not understand what was being said in the room since he was not provided with translation.
“We had hoped that the court might show some independence but, in the end, Russian judges are political, not legal, entities,” David Whelan, Mr Whelan’s brother, said in an emailed statement after the verdict, adding that his family only counts on direct negotiations between Russia and the United States to secure his release.
John Sullivan, US Ambassador to Russia, described Monday’s verdict as a “mockery of justice.”
“If it can happen to Paul, it can happen to anyone,” Mr Sullivan said outside the court on Monday.
Dmitry Peskov, spokesman for Russian president Vladimir Putin, on Monday refused to describe Mr Whelan as a political hostage, insisting that he was convicted on the charges that were “proven and upheld in court.”
The ordeal for Mr Whelan, who holds British, American, Irish and Canadian passports, began in December 2018 when he was visiting Russia for a wedding.
Russian investigators do not reveal the details of the indictment, citing secrecy, but Mr Whelan’s attorney claims that his client has been framed after he was given a flash drive with documents containing state secrets right before he was arrested in an upscale hotel in central Moscow.
Mr Whelan, who during the last few years before he was arrested travelled frequently to Russia, has insisted that an acquaintance who later turned out to be an intelligence agent gave him a USB stick, saying it contained pictures of his recent holiday.
Speculation was raised almost immediately after Mr Whelan’s arrest that he could be exchanged for a Russian woman held in the US charged with acting as an unregistered foreign agent. However, she was deported back to Russia last year.
Mr Whelan’s attorney Vladimir Zherebenkov confirmed on Monday that he has been approached about a potential prisoner swap but said he was not at liberty to disclose “certain details.”
Mr Zherebenkov said that Mr Whelan is not opposed to the idea of formally asking for presidential pardon, which could pave the way for the exchange.
There are several high-profile Russian prisoners in the US that Moscow has wanted to get back for years including Viktor Bout, the notorious Russian arms dealer convicted for 25 years in a US prison.
Mr Zherebenkov said on Monday that his client was told by a Russian intelligence officer upon arrest in 2018 that he would be swapped for Mr Bout.
