MOSCOW (AP)– A Russian court on Monday sentenced an American business owner to 16 years in jail on spying charges, a sentence that he and his bro turned down as being political.
The Moscow City Court read out the conviction of Paul Whelan on charges of espionage and sentenced him to 16 years in a maximum security prison nest. The trial was held behind closed doors.
Whelan, who was detained in Moscow in December 2018, has demanded his innocence, stating he was established.
Speaking after the decision, U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan knocked the secret