Russia released former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan as part of the prisoner swap and also secured the release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Fox News Digital reported.
According to the State Department, Whelan had been wrongfully detained by Russian authorities for more than five years. His release is part of a larger exchange of political prisoners and journalists involving the United States and Germany.
Whelan, a Michigan corporate security officer, Former U.S. Marine, He has been imprisoned in Russia since his arrest in December 2018 on espionage-related charges, which both he and the U.S. government dispute. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison.
WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich released in prisoner swap with Russia
Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who was arrested on espionage charges, listens to his sentence in court at Moscow City Court in Russia, June 15, 2020. (Sofia Sandurskaya, Moscow News Agency photo via Associated Press)
“We have made clear to Russia our expectation that they will learn more about the allegations, understand what crimes the suspects are accused of, and if detention is not appropriate, we will seek their immediate extradition,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at the time.
Whelan was convicted of using false documents and trying to steal thousands of dollars while serving in Iraq and was discharged for bad conduct in 2008. He has been visiting Russia since at least 2007 and has had friends and connections there for more than a decade. His family said Whelan In Russia He was travelling as a tourist at the time of his arrest.
Biden meets with Paul Whelan’s sister at White House after Russia again refuses to release ex-Marine
Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who was arrested in Russia in December 2018 on espionage charges, stands in a prison cage while awaiting sentencing in Moscow on June 15, 2020. (Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images)
“My brother is not a spy,” Whelan’s older brother, David, said shortly after his arrest. “Paul comes from a law enforcement background. He’s been in the military and he works in corporate security.”
Experts believe her arrest is the Kremlin’s response to the US imprisoning a Russian citizen. Maria Butina pleaded guilty in 2018 to US federal charges of conspiring to act as a foreign agent, for providing the Russian government with information on key US politicians.
Family of US Marine Corps veteran Paul Whelan, jailed in Russia, attacked in prison
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was convicted of espionage by the Russian government and sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison on July 19. (Alexander Nemenov / Contributor)
In November, Whelan’s family said he was attacked by fellow prisoners on the production line at the labour camp.
Gershkovich, 32, was detained in March 2023 during a reporting trip to the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, about 1,200 miles (1,900 kilometers) east of Moscow. He was accused of espionage and has been held since. A Moscow court last month again rejected his request for pretrial release and extended his detention until at least Jan. 30, 2024.
The Biden administration declared him “unlawfully detained,” and both the Wall Street Journal and the U.S. government strongly denied the charges, describing them as absurd on their face.
At least two Americans have been arrested in Russia in recent years, including: WNBA star Brittney Griner, Exchanged for Russians imprisoned in the US
Fox News’ Bret Baier and Amy Munneke, Fox News Digital’s Daniel Wallace and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
