Russian officials detained Paul Whelan in 2018 on allegations of spying. Two years later, a judge handed down a 16-year prison term for the alleged crime against the former US Marine born in Canada. Whelan is still in Russia, although a fellow American detained there has now been freed.
On December 8, the Kremlin exchanged arms dealer Viktor Bout, who was roughly halfway through a 25-year prison sentence in the US, for WNBA player Brittney Griner. Some wondered why the US Government sent Whelan overseas after the basketball player was freed from jail.
The White House claims that Vladimir Putin’s government in Russia is treating Whelan differently. The administration swapped a prisoner with the nation that had sent him there twice.
According to John Bolton, a former national security adviser, ex-President Donald Trump would not swap Whelan for Bout. The White House stated that it is attempting to bring Whelan home and termed the accusations against him “completely unjustified.”
Whelan holds citizenship in the US, Canada, Ireland, and Britain.
