But Whelan never made it to the ceremony. On 28 December, however, he was arrested by Russia's FSB state security agency, which claimed he had been "caught spying" in Moscow. On June 15, 2020, he received a 16-year prison sentence. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt told Sky News on Friday that the British government is trying to help Paul Whelan. Russian lawyers for Whelan also lamented that their client was not included in the swap. [47][48] His twin brother David ascribed Paul's acquisition of the multiple nationalities to "probably a genealogical interest as much as anything. [14] They further claim that Whelan's arrest is connected to tensions between Russia and the United States, including the detention of confessed unregistered foreign agent Maria Butina. Ukraine live briefing: Kyiv targeted by missiles; explosions in Russia derail train, damage power line, Philippine presidents White House visit reflects sharp upturn in ties, Eyeing China, Biden official floats a new Washington consensus, American Trevor Reed, a former Marine who was detained in 2019, was exchanged. Then-Staff Sgt. "Secrecy, provocation and falsification, that's the arsenal of our opponents," says Ivan Pavlov, a human rights lawyer who has gone up against the FSB in many espionage cases. This article will convey all the necessary information on Paul Whelan. And so Paul will remain a prisoner until that changes, he said while applauding Griners release. Read about our approach to external linking. More: Paul Whelan's early life and the possibility of congressional intervention. The below table shows the required personal life details of Paul Whelan. Paul Whelan, 52, is a Marine turned corporate security executive who was convicted of espionage and is serving a 16-year sentence in a Russian prison. Marine Corps). Odds are he did something wrong. "That person was an FSB officer. "They want Yaroshenko and Bout, that's who they want back," Paul Whelan claimed, naming two high-profile Russian prisoners in America as the court bailiffs ushered me and my microphone out of the room. He was discharged from the Marines for bad conduct in 2008 after being convicted of charges related to larceny, according to military and court records. They talked about foreign travel and never met. In an interview with ABC News in November 2020, Whelan described the place as very, very old. [22], The BBC cited family members of Whelan, who said he previously bragged about knowing an agent of the FSB, and was privy to an unusual cache of personal details about his friend, including which intelligence training school he attended (biographical information typically reserved for a very close circle). "[14] A few weeks later, Zherebenkov said Whelan had been unaware of the contents of the USB drive and believed it contained material solely of personal value such as "photographs, videos, anything at all, about his previous holiday in Russia. Mr Whelan continued to work for Kelly Services, being promoted to senior manager of global security and investigations in 2010. His job included campus security as well as electronic and IT-related security. He is currently facing. Just two weeks after his arrest, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared that the American had been caught "red-handed" conducting a "concrete, illegal act". The Salisbury poisoning: What happened next? Paul Whelan was detained by the Federal Security Service of Russia on 28th December 2018 at the Metropol Hotel room in Moscow. "No way? I dont understand why Im still sitting here.. The American refused and as his time in custody was extended repeatedly, he gradually grew bolder in court. the man replied to my enquiries, adding that his own interest was in the ex-Marine's time in Iraq. . The Russian described the two spending several days "touring Moscow" together, eating sushi and caviar-filled pancakes. In Room 3324 of Moscow's Metropol hotel, Paul Whelan was getting dressed for a friend's wedding when Russian intelligence officers burst in.