Paul Whelan, who has been detained in a Russian prison for four years, is shown in a screenshot from a broadcast released by the country’s government news network. (RT/X)
(Tribune News Service) — Novi, Mich., native Paul Whelan, who has been detained in a Russian prison for four years, has been seen in a broadcast released by the country's government news network.
During a report focused on Whelan that aired Monday from Russia Today, a state-controlled television network, Whelan can be seen going about his day in a Russian prison, sewing and eating in a cafeteria with other inmates. It is the first time since 2020 family and supporters have seen him, his brother said.
During the introduction of the six-minute broadcast aired in English, reporter Igor Zhdanov says, "Inmates of this maximum security prison are no ordinary hooligans."
It is unclear when the footage of Whelan was taken.
The report focuses on Whelan, saying the U.S. Marine veteran has been convicted of espionage and sentenced to 16 years behind bars. When the correspondent approaches to interview Whelan, he states, "I can't do an interview. I can't answer any questions."
Whelan, a former security executive for Michigan-based auto supplier BorgWarner, is serving his sentence at a labor camp in the remote province of Mordovia and is in his fifth year of detention. He and U.S. officials have long decried his conviction on espionage charges as trumped up.
His brother, David Whelan, said Russian prison officials damaged his belongings Friday because he refused interviews with Russian state television.
"Paul Whelan has been a hostage of the Kremlin for 1,704 days," David Whelan said in an email update to supporters. "Today was the first time I've seen what he really looks like since June 2020. So thank you, Russia Today, because although your reporting is the worst sort of propaganda and you are the mouthpiece for war criminals, at least I could see what Paul looks like after all of these years."
Whelan said similar photos and footage was captured by the RT in May.
"They followed me around the prison, both at prisoner formation and in the factory. This went on for several hours and they kept bugging me when I said I did not want to participate," Whelan said.
Whelan previously called on the prison service and prosecutor at the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia to investigate what he called "retaliation." His complaints also have been forwarded to the State Department for them to raise with their Russian counterparts, David Whelan said.
David Whelan pointed out the end of the broadcast, where his brother stared directly into the camera.
"I see strength and determination and contempt," David Whelan said.
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