OAN’s Brooke Mallory
11:39 AM – Wednesday, November 29, 2023
According to a statement from his brother, Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine carrying out a sentence in Russia on espionage charges, was attacked by another prisoner in a Russian facility.
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When Whelan attempted to persuade a prisoner to move several times while they were both at a sewing workshop in a penal colony in Russia’s Mordovia region, he was then punched in the face and had to defend himself.
“A new prisoner blocked part of the production line and Paul asked him to move out of the way. After repeated requests, the prisoner hit Paul in the face, breaking Paul’s glasses in the process, and attempted to hit him a second time,” said Dave Whelan, his brother.
“Paul stood up to block the second hit, and other prisoners intervened to prevent the prisoner continuing the attack on Paul,” he continued.
Since Paul was an American and anti-American sentiment was “not uncommon among the other prisoners,” Dave expressed that he believed his brother had been targeted.
However, “Paul says he believes the prison administration is taking the attack seriously,” Dave Whelan said.
Paul Whelan was detained in Russia back in 2018 and sentenced to 16 years at a prison in Mordovia, a province southeast of Moscow. He was later found guilty of espionage, two years after his initial arrest.
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By: OAN
