Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan was charged with espionage, which carries up to 20 years in prison in Russia.SHAMIL ZHUMATOV/Reuters
A Russian court on Friday extended the arrest for a former U.S. Marine charged with espionage, who complained in court about abuse in custody.
Paul Whelan was arrested at the end of December at a Moscow hotel, where he was attending a wedding. He was charged with espionage, which carries punishment of up to 20 years in prison in Russia.
Mr. Whelan denies the charges of spying for the United States that his lawyers said stem from a sting operation. One of the lawyers has said his client was handed a flash drive that had classified information on it that he didn’t know about.
The court ruled on Friday that the Michigan resident, who also holds British, Irish and Canadian citizenship, be kept behind bars for three more months.
Mr. Whelan told reporters in court that he has been threatened and subjected to “abuses and harassment” in prison.
“I haven’t had a shower in two weeks. I can’t use a barber, I have to cut my own hair,” a visibly agitated Mr. Whelan said from the defendant’s dock. “This is typical prisoner-of-war isolation technique. They’re trying to run me down so that I will talk to them.”
Andrea Kalan, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in Moscow, said Friday that the American officials are disappointed with the ruling, arguing there is “no evidence of any wrongdoing.”
“The mature, civilized course would be to let Paul go home to his elderly parents, who are wondering if they’ll see their son alive again,” Ms. Kalan said.
Rights activist Eva Merkachova, who is authorized to visit Moscow prisons, told the RIA Novosti news agency on Friday that the prison administration at the Lefortovo detention centre, where Mr. Whelan is being kept, did not let her speak to the American because they were speaking English.
She said she and another activist were told by a prison guard that they can only speak Russian on the premises and that Lefortovo refused to let in a certified translator.
Mikhail Fedotov, chairman of the Russian presidential council for human rights, told Russian news agencies that members of his council will look into Mr. Whelan’s complaints.