Next Hearing In Paul Whelan Espionage Case To Occur Before August 28 In Moscow - Family

Next Hearing in Paul Whelan Espionage Case to Occur Before August 28 in Moscow - Family

The next hearing in the case of US citizen Paul Whelan, who is detained in Moscow on charges of espionage, will be take place before August 28, Paul's brother David Whelan said in a statement on Thursday

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 15th August, 2019) The next hearing in the case of US citizen Paul Whelan, who is detained in Moscow on charges of espionage, will be take place before August 28, Paul's brother David Whelan said in a statement on Thursday.

"Another detention hearing will occur before August 28," David Whelan said. "The family believes that it should take place on August 26 and the judge will continue imprisonment for another three months."

David Whelan said the Russian authorities are not showing interest in continuing with what he termed was a "charade." He also reiterated that his brother Paul was wrongfully arrested and there is no evidence to back up the charges levied against him.

"US Embassy staff visited Paul on August 1 and he said that it had been weeks since he'd been seen by Investigator Alexey Khiznyak and interrogated," David Whelan said.

The Russian authorities arrested Paul Whelan in December for what they said was an act of espionage. He faces a prison sentence of up to 20 years if found guilty.

On May 30, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov confirmed that Whelan and his legal team would have full access to the case materials after the authorities complete their investigation.

According to information provided to the court, Paul Whelan had been visiting Russia regularly since 2007. He had worked as a senior manager at the BorgWarner automotive company.