Perhaps Whelan enjoyed the element of danger that came from flirting with the FSB, hanging out with intelligence officers. ", List of American people imprisoned in Russia, "U.S. citizen arrested in Russia on spying charges", "As American Sits In Moscow Jail, Russia Says U.S. Has Detained One Of Its Citizens", "Paul Whelan: the strange case of the ex-marine jailed for spying in Russia", "Paul Whelan's twin opens up about Russia spy allegations, citizenship", "U.S. ambassador meets with Ottawa-born man arrested in Russia on spying charges", "American Paul Whelan was in Russia for wedding, not to spy, family says", "American charged with espionage in Russia has an unlikely background for a spy", "Meet Putin's American Prisoner, Paul Whelan", "Accused spy Paul Whelan was discharged from Marines for bad conduct", "New details emerge about Novi resident accused of spying in Russia", "Spy or Not? Ryan Pickrell, Business Insider Paul Whelan is being held in the renovated wing, where the Norwegian says there is hot water in the cells now as well as a fridge, TV and toilet. While not as severe as a dishonorable discharge, a bad conduct discharge is a significant punishment in the U.S. military justice system. The link led to Maxim, who explained that his new friend, Paul Whelan, was helping with his English which he planned to study at university. On Wednesday, the Foreign Ministry spokeswoman called on Washington to show "humanity" and release Yaroshenko "and other unjustly convicted" Russians. Administrative Discharge Status Can Affect Benefits. The Russian government declared Paul Whelan guilty long ago. Video, 00:01:32Brother of detained American speaks, The Russian gun activist who was jailed in US. A decade later, he would message home regularly from trips to Russia displaying similar almost child-like wonder at new discoveries. He now told me his friend had planted the device in his pocket, without him realising. Concern for Whelan flared up again in November after he was not able to contact his family for more than a week and Russian authorities claimed he had been sent to a hospital. Read about our approach to external linking. Labelling it "Dinner with Tovarishi", or comrades, he messaged the image to a third Russian friend - even as he was supposedly discussing how to transfer classified intelligence. But in 2008 Mr Whelan, who had achieved the rank of staff sergeant, was discharged from the marines for bad conduct. Is he an ex-marine officer? Why wasn't Whelan included in the prisoner swap? Paul Whelan, Ex-U.S. Marine Jailed in Russia on Spying Charges He later worked as a global security executive for the auto Whelan, 48, was arrested Fridayin Moscow, and was charged withespionage. Family handout/AFP. Paul N. Whelan, adjutant, Marine Air Control Group 38 (Reinforced), 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward), pictured before the Kremlin in 2007. "He said Russia! The FSB was already dripping details of the case it would make in court. Kristen Jordan Shamus - Detroit Free Press. He left the company in 2016 and started working for BorgWarner, an Auburn Hills-based auto supplier, in 2017, according to company spokeswoman Kathy Graham. passport. Irelands Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement Friday that its embassy in Moscow is requesting consular access to Whelan. Cleve R. Wootson Jr. contributed to this report. 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. for choosing Brittney Grinner over Whelan. Read about our approach to external linking. Cowboys Micah Parsons apologizes for calling it crazy that Whelan has been detained in Russia for nearly four years and in August 2020, he was sent to prison camp IK-17 in the Mordovia region of Russia, some 210 miles east of Moscow. Quite dilapidated. The former Marine said he was living in quite crowded spaces and estimated that his building housed 50 to 60 people. Another link leads to a homemade guide to the Cyrillic alphabet and some basic first words in Russian. He wasn't allowed a phone call home for 16 months. governments reaction to Paul Whelans arrest. "I remember making small talk once and I said, 'You travel a lot for work, where do you travel for fun? Dustoff262 Charter Member / Moderator On 15 June, it took the chief judge just 1 minute 20 seconds to reach the key words in his verdict. Whelan went on to seek out more Russian friends, using the country's social networking service VK among others. "It will be very difficult to mount a defence.". Indian officials wife distraught as his killer is freed. At that, the judge ordered the TV cameras to be removed from court. he wrote. 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. Whalen was reduced in rank from staff sergeant to corporal and given a bad conduct discharge from the service. He says his brother's VK messages were deleted after his arrest. But Whelan chatted openly to relatives on email about his friend, including which "FSB school" he'd attended. It was an Automobile component distributor company. A year later, just days before his arrest, Mr Whelan took "Dmitry" and another man for Christmas dinner at a restaurant opposite his hotel. It was due to his knowledge of Russia that he had been asked to attend the wedding of a fellow former marine in Moscow in December 2018, his brother David told the BBC's Newshour after his arrest. The man Whelan accuses of framing him was one of his oldest friends in Russia. David Whelan, meanwhile, has dismissed the allegations as nonsense. Russian authorities alleged he possessed a computer flash drive containing classified information. [16][17][18] Whelan's twin brother David said Whelan arrived in Moscow on December 22 to attend the wedding of a former fellow Marine at the Hotel Metropol Moscow and to assist the groom's family members on their first visit to Russia, a country he had visited many times. "Really, an exchange should be equal," he said. They also said he owed Whelan around 80,000 roubles ($1,147; 930) which the FSB claimed was advance payment for intelligence. (Cpl. '," a former colleague, Skotti Fietsam, told the BBC. Whelan received a "bad conduct discharge" from the Marines in 2008. In 2008, Paul was discharged from the Marines for his. [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. "I'm not allowed to give you details, but I can tell you I was set-up. He took a military leave of absence from Kelly Services, he testified, to serve in Iraq. Whelan's own defence lawyer once hinted at that possibility. "Factbox: Paul Whelan, Ex-U.S. Marine Jailed in Russia on Spying Charges." He rose to the rank of staff sergeant in December 2004 and was deployed in the war against Iraq for several months in 2004 and 2006. Because Whelan received a bad conduct discharge, the claim that Paul Whelan received a punitive discharge from the Marines is "True.". "I don't know anything what [sic] might be interesting to foreign spy. "But it was very unusual.". the man replied to my enquiries, adding that his own interest was in the ex-Marine's time in Iraq. Britains foreign secretary says that Russia is trying to use him as a pawn in its geopolitical games. Whelan served 14 years in the US Marine Corps Reserve until he was discharged for bad conduct in 2008. Whelan received what is categorized broadly as a punitive discharge. At the time of his arrest, he was corporate security director at BorgWarner, a Michigan-based automotive parts supplier. The below table shows the required personal life details of Paul Whelan. The Pentagon, Born in Canada to British parents of Irish heritage, he later moved to the US entitling him to multiple passports as a result. VideoThe secret mine that hid the Nazis' stolen treasure, LGBT troops take love for Eurovision to front line. One replied to tell me he'd been a student and supermarket night-guard when the American first made contact. The Interfax news agency says he has denied the allegation. "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. Read about our approach to external linking. To be correct, the Marines did not give Paul Whelan a Dishonorable Discharge. And he didn't hide his interests and encounters. "Had this been an independent court, they would have reached only one decision - not guilty," his lawyer, Vladimir Zherebyonkov said after the verdict. (Courtesy of the Whelan Family via AP), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Paul Whelan: The strange case of the ex-marine jailed for spying The appropriate social media access links are given below. ago. It said it made the request after receiving a request for assistance from an Irish citizen detained in Moscow. Whelan was born on March 5, 1970,[4] in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada,[5] to British parents with Irish heritage. "[12], When arrested in Russia, Whelan was director of global security and investigations for BorgWarner, an international automotive parts manufacturer based in Michigan. The Russian described the two spending several days "touring Moscow" together, eating sushi and caviar-filled pancakes. [43] The Russian side insisted on the additional release of Vadim Krasikov, an assassin serving a life sentence for murder in Germany. There were even allegations that Norway was under pressure to obtain the information from its partners in Nato. Paul Whelan Some observers have said they believe Whelan's arrest was made on flimsy grounds and is likely retribution for the arrest of a suspected Russian spy. It was while serving in the marines that he made his first trip to Russia, a visit he detailed on his website, which was shut down several years ago. He has studied Russian but communicated online using Google Translate. David Whelan comments on his brother's arrest by Russian authorities. Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt told Sky News on Friday that the British government is trying to help Paul Whelan. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Service. The two met in person for a few hours in 2008 when Whelan was touring Russia, visiting multiple friends in various cities. Whelan's last place of duty was Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in California. Whelan was friends with young servicemen in the US, though, too. This undated photo provided by the Whelan family shows Paul Whelan in Iceland. On Dec. 8, 2022, WNBA star Brittney Griner was released to American custody after spending nearly 10 months as a prisoner in the Russian penal system on marijuana-related charges. In Whelan's case, there's the added nuance that his defence team were appointed and paid for by the Russian state. The judge then turned to address the defendant, who was standing in a glass cage guarded by two FSB security officers in black balaclavas. At the time, he was identified only as an American but officials say Whelan also has British citizenship. How long has Paul Whelan been held in a Russian penal colony? From 2010 to 2016 Whelan was Kelly Services' senior manager of global security and operations. Whelan worked as an administrative clerk and administrative chief and was deployed in Was Paul Whelan Punitively Discharged from the Marines? In early 2019, the drama of his now multi-national arrest was developing against a hostile political backdrop, with mutual sanctions over the Ukraine crisis and East-West tension not felt since Soviet times. Is climate change killing Australian wine? He held the rank of staff sergeant with Marine Air Control Group 38 working as an administrative clerk and administrative chief, and he was part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Paul Whelan's Marine discharge was larceny related - Detroit [47][48] His twin brother David ascribed Paul's acquisition of the multiple nationalities to "probably a genealogical interest as much as anything. As his family step-up their appeals to bring him home, officials in Moscow are already hinting at a possible prisoner swap adding to suspicions that the man from Michigan is a pawn in a political game that has yet to play out. ", Zherebenko has worked on the high-profile international case of a Russian accused of. Earlier this year, American Trevor Reed, a former Marine who was detained in 2019, was exchanged for Konstantin Yaroshenko, a Russian pilot who was convicted of drug smuggling and sentenced to 20 years in a U.S. prison. He started as an IT project manager for a company called Kelly Services in the early 2000s, but deployed with the marines within a couple of years on the first of two tours to Iraq, in 2004 and then 2006. Was Paul Whelan given a bad-conduct discharge from the Marines? [7] A former colleague said he was a patrol officer from 1998 to 2000 in the Keego Harbor police department. Paul Whelan would be brought for multiple custody hearings and appeals over the months and we squeezed in almost every time. In addition to larceny, specifically the attempted theft of $10,410.59 of US government money, he also reportedly bounced checks to the tune of $6,000. Paul Whelan Published Jan 5, 2019 3:56 PM EST. According to court documents, he was in charge of the company's campus security group, and his duties included managing and conducting investigations, as well as handling some purchasing. Whalen was reduced in rank from staff sergeant to corporal and given a bad conduct discharge from the service. He said in a deposition in 2013 that he holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and an MBA degree. "That's the only reason they've done this," he alleged. Get the latest in military news, entertainment and gear in your inbox daily. "This is 'Lubyanka' where the KGB has our spies locked in the basement!! His job at BorgWarner involves overseeing security for facilities, assets and people in Auburn Hills and around the world, Graham said. So when Whelan's plight became public, there was speculation that he could be the human collateral. His job included campus security as well as electronic and IT-related security. That was a day after U.S. All the signs so far suggest Moscow is opening with a high bid - Viktor Bout, a weapons dealer serving 25 years in America and Konstantin Yaroshenko, sentenced to 20 years for drugs smuggling. Whelan, arrested Dec. 28, 2018, in a Moscow hotel, has said he thought the flash drive that he received from an acquaintance contained holiday photos. COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEALS WASHINGTON, D.C. - Navy A retired border guard, Frode Berg admitted to delivering envelopes of cash and spy instructions on behalf of Norwegian military intelligence agency. 2023 www.freep.com. At the same time, Washington was still accusing Moscow of meddling in its elections. In one email exchange during his early 2018 trip to Moscow, a relative joked: "Don't get into any trouble we can't get you out of, haha!". New details have emerged about the military historyNovi businessman Paul Whelan, who has been accused of spying in Russia. ", US 'outraged' as Russia jails American for spying. He served 14 years in the Corps before he was discharged. James B. Hoke/U.S. "We never see or meet other prisoners. "[21] As of January 4, British and Irish consular officials were seeking access to Whelan. [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). He'd prepare a speech for each session, writing it out on a sheet of paper vetted and stamped by the prison censors. The release of Brittney Griner, the American basketball star imprisoned in Russia who was exchanged Thursday for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout, shed light on the case of another American prisoner, Paul Whelan. Moscow Paul Whelan, Before that he spent 14 years in the U.S. Marine Corps before being discharged in 2008 for bad conduct, according to the military. A special court martial also found him guilty of failing to report his vacation time. He mostly represents Russians accused of selling secrets to the West and says the number of such cases has grown significantly since the political climate turned cold again in 2014. But the space measures 9.5 square metres between two prisoners and exercise is one hour a day on the roof. Claim: Paul Whelan received a punitive discharge from the Marines. 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. Paul Whelan received a "bad conduct discharge" from the Marines in 2008. 2023 BBC. True. It was a choice of bringing home one American, Brittney Griner, or bringing home none, the official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity on a call with reporters. Florida resident Vladimir Nevidomy pleaded guilty in June 2018 to conspiracy with Makarenko and was sentenced to 26 months in prison. State TV crews, hovering for their shots in the hallway, were already referring to the accused man as "the American spy". He took a military leave of absence from Kelly Services, he testified, to serve in Iraq. So no evidence - the wire taps or surveillance footage the case is reportedly based on - has been made public. He thought it was cool to hang-out with FSB people and low level military personnel (probably anyone above a private rank would give him no attention). He said his brother planned to return to Michigan on January 6, 2019, via Saint Petersburg. His family, it has emerged, were unaware of events. The Ex-Marine 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. President Biden said Thursday that those efforts have failed so far because Russia has decided to treat Whelans case differently given the nature of the espionage charges levied against him.
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