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| Russian court jails former US marine Paul Whelan for 16 years over espionage charges | Russian court jails former US marine Paul Whelan for 16 years over espionage charges |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| The American, who also holds British, Canadian and Irish passports, was found guilty of espionage by a Russian court on Monday. The investigation claimed he was caught red-handed after receiving classified data two years ago. | The American, who also holds British, Canadian and Irish passports, was found guilty of espionage by a Russian court on Monday. The investigation claimed he was caught red-handed after receiving classified data two years ago. |
| Moscow City Court issued the verdict earlier on Monday, sentencing Paul Whelan to 16 years in jail. Part of the hearing took place behind closed doors. | |
| Whelan is set to serve the term in a high-security prison. His defense will appeal the sentence, and the defendant himself said the trial was “political.” | |
| The indictment reportedly alleged that Whelan, who frequently visited Russia, received a USB drive containing a list of active-duty FSB operatives from one of the secret service’s members back in 2018. Whelan was arrested during the rendezvous, which took place at the five-star Hotel Metropol in Moscow. | |
| The defense team insists the American believed he was receiving a flash drive containing photos of a joint event he set up with a Russian friend, rather than the highly classified information. Whelan’s lawyers have consistently claimed he was the victim of a frame-up. | |
| DETAILS TO FOLLOW | DETAILS TO FOLLOW |