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Agence France-Presse

A Russian court on Friday extended the detention of a former US marine charged with espionage until late May, refusing a request that he be released under house arrest.
Paul Whelan was taken into custody in late December by Russia’s FSB security service which said he was caught “while carrying out an act of espionage”.
He has been in custody since then and on Friday Judge Sergei Ryabtsev in Moscow’s Lefortovo District Court ruled to keep Whelan in pre-trial detention for at least another three months, until May 28.
Sitting in a cage in the courtroom, Whelan told journalists he is “holding up well”.
Whelan’s defence denies any wrongdoing, saying the American was framed by an acquaintance who handed him a USB drive allegedly containing state secrets.
Lawyer Vladimir Zherebenkov said after Friday’s hearing that the decision to keep Whelan under arrest was “absolutely illegal”.

Whelan, who lived in the United States but was in Russia for a wedding, met with the acquaintance in Moscow and was expecting to receive photos of a May trip to the Russian countryside, Zherebenkov said.
“We believe that this was a provocation and a crime by his acquaintance,” he said. He said the acquaintance could have been motivated by “career considerations” or a reluctance to return money owed to Whelan.
Paul Whelan, American arrested in Moscow for ‘spying’ was there for wedding, family says
He said the defence asked the judge to change his arrest conditions to house arrest in a flat belonging to Zherebenkov, but the motion was denied.
Since his detention, Whelan has been visited by officials from the US, Canadian, Irish and British embassies, as he carries passports for all of these countries.

According to The New York Times, the Marine Corps court-martialled Whelan in 2008 on charges of larceny and passing bad cheques, an offence that in most cases disqualifies candidates from foreign intelligence work.
The US embassy in Moscow said it was closely following the case but could not provide any further information because Russian authorities had so far prevented Whelan from signing a privacy waiver.
“We are strongly concerned about the delay” in allowing him to sign the waiver, US embassy spokeswoman Andrea Kalan said. “Consular access without being able to do true consular support is not real access.”


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Russia

Russian court refuses house arrest request, extends detention of alleged US spy Paul Whelan

Paul Whelan, a former US Marine, who was arrested in Moscow at the end of last year, attends a hearing in a court in Moscow. Photo: AP Photo

Former U.S. marine Paul Whelan who is being held on suspicion of spying, is escorted out of a courtroom after a ruling regarding extension of his detention, in Moscow, Russia, February 22, 2019. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov

Former U.S. marine Paul Whelan who is being held on suspicion of spying, stands in the courtroom cage after a ruling regarding extension of his detention, in Moscow, Russia, February 22, 2019. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Alleged US spy Paul Whelan was unwittingly carrying Russian state secrets on flash drive, his lawyer says

epa07308812 Vladimir Zherebenkov (C), a lawyer of suspected spy Paul Whelan, speaks to the media after a hearing of an appeal on Whelan's arrest, in front of the Moscow City Court in Moscow, Russia, 22 January 2019. Paul Whelan, a citizen of the United States, Britain, Canada and Ireland, was detained by Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) on suspicion of spying at the end of December 2018 in Moscow. The court declined the appeal. EPA-EFE/YURI KOCHETKOV

Accused spy Paul Whelan (right) and his lawyer Vladimir Zherebenkov (left, back) and an unidentified woman confer during a hearing of an appeal on his arrest at the Moscow City Court on Tuesday. Photo: EPA

Paul Whelan, former US Marine accused of spying by Russia, is a citizen of four countries

This undated family photo shows Paul Whelan, an American ex-Marine who Russian prosecutors have charged in Moscow with espionage. Photo: AFP

This undated family handout picture obtained on January 3, 2019, shows Paul Whelan posing for a picture, an American ex-Marine who Russian prosecutors have charged in Moscow with espionage. - Russian prosecutors have charged an American ex-Marine detained in Moscow last week with espionage, his lawyer said January 3, 2019, the latest in a series of spying accusations between Moscow and Washington. (Photo by FAMILY HANDOUT / Family Photo / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT "AFP PHOTO / FAMILY PHOTO" - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS ---

Maria Butina at a Russian shooting range in 2012. Photo: Pavel Ptitsin / AP

epa07261497 A building of the investigation department of the Federal Security Service of Russia (FSB), Lefortovo pretrial detention facility is reflected in the window decorated with Russian flag, Moscow, Russia, 04 January 2019. The US Marine veteran, Paul Whelan, was arrested in Moscow by the FSB on 28 December 2018 on espionage allegations for which he could be sentenced to at least 10 years in prison. EPA-EFE/MAXIM SHIPENKOV

Russian intelligence detain American ‘Paul Whelan’ in Moscow on spying charges

Red Square in Moscow, Russia, on December 27, 2018. Photo: Bloomberg

Russia has charged former US marine Paul Whelan with espionage, news agency reports

Paul Whelan, who has been arrested in Russia on espionage charges. Whelan, 48, is a retired US Marine. Photo: Whelan family

A view shows the pre-trial detention centre Lefortovo, where former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan is reportedly held in custody in Moscow, Russia January 3, 2019. REUTERS/Shamil Zhumatov

epa07257618 An Undated handout image released by the Whelan family showing Paul Whelan of Michigan who has reportedly been arrested in Moscow, Russia by the FSB under charges of espionage despite the family advising he was in Russia for a wedding in Novi, Michigan, USA, 01 January 2019. The US state department has requested access to Whelan but not yet been able to see him according to reports. The Marine veteran, Paul Whelan, from Detroit was arrested in Russia on December 28 on espionage allegations for which he could be sentenced to at least 10 years in prison. EPA-EFE/WHELAN FAMILY / HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Russian court refuses house arrest request, extends detention of alleged US spy Paul Whelan

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Former US marine, charged with espionage, will be held until late May

Former US marine, charged with espionage, will be held until late May