15.06.2020, Moscow.
The Moscow City Court sentenced former US marine Paul Whelan to 16 years in prison for spying against Russia, Rossa Primavera News Agency reports on June 15.
US citizen Paul Whelan has been found guilty by a court under article 276 of the Russian Criminal Code (Espionage). Whelan will serve his sentence in a maximum security prison, the court verdict reads.
The prosecutor requested 18 years in prison.
The accused pleaded not guilty and considers the verdict politically motivated. The defense team for the US citizen intends to appeal, said Whelan’s lawyer Olga Karlova.
On December 28, 2018, Paul Whelan who is a citizen of the US, the UK, Canada and the Irish Republic, was detained by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) officers at the Metropol Hotel in Moscow on charges of espionage.
Source: Rossa Primavera News Agency
