Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine accused of spying and arrested in Russia, stands inside a defendants’ cage during a hearing at a court in Moscow, on Aug. 23, 2019. (Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images)
It’s a bad sign that former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who is currently in jail in Russia on spying charges, was beaten up by another prisoner on November 28. His brother David Whelan confirmed this. Paul told the story of how he was attacked at a sewing table in a jail workshop for asking a new prisoner to move out of the way. The attacker hit Paul in the face, breaking his glasses, and then tried to hit him again. The attack happened in a place that guards don’t go, so Paul was helpless against his attacker until other prisoners stepped in. The Russian TASS news agency reported on the event on November 29, but said that jail staff had stepped in to stop it. Paul Whelan has been in jail since December 2018. He is a native of the United States, Great Britain, Ireland, and Canada. The attack makes people even more worried about his safety while he is in Russian custody.
One of Paul Whelan’s twin brothers, David Whelan, was very worried about his safety in a Russian jail because of anti-American feelings. After the recent attack on November 28, David said he wasn’t sure how Paul would be safe in the future because prisoners can get to sharp tools in the workshop. Paul’s safety needs to be ensured right away because the jail setting is becoming more dangerous.
The White House wants to free Whelan and other people.
According to the NTD News, the fifth anniversary of Paul Whelan’s arrest is coming up soon. The U.S. State Department says he was wrongly held and that the Biden administration is still trying to get him released. In a famous prisoner swap last year, Russian Viktor Bout was freed in exchange for WNBA player Brittney Griner. Even though they wanted to free Whelan as part of the deal, Russia said no. Lynne Tracy, the U.S. ambassador to Russia, visited Whelan in September, and people are still trying to get Evan Gershkovich, a writer for the Wall Street Journal who is being held in Russia, released. On the other hand, Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian American resident who has been held since June and is facing charges, has not been marked as wrongly arrested by the U.S. State Department yet because they need more information and are having trouble getting diplomatic access.
