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US national Paul Whelan claims mistreatment by FSB officials, his brother says

David Whelan said the US Embassy sent a request to see Paul, following his statement of mistreatment

NEW YORK, June 5. /TASS/. US national Paul Whelan, arrested in Russia on charges of espionage, claims that he has been mistreated by Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) officials during his interrogation, the accused’s brother David Whelan informed TASS via email.

"The US Embassy sent a request to see Paul, following his statement of mistreatment at the hands of FSB officials during interrogations. Embassy staff saw Paul on Friday [May 31, 2019] and asked him to provide additional details. Throughout the visit, Russian authorities attempted to prevent the US representatives from discussing a variety of topics that had been specifically identified in Paul's courtroom statement and the Embassy's subsequent request to see Paul," David Whelan wrote.

US citizen Paul Whelan, 48, who also holds British, Canadian and Irish passports, is a global security chief at BorgWarner, a Michigan-based automotive components company. The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) earlier said Whelan had been detained on December 28, 2018 in Moscow while on an alleged spy mission. A criminal investigation was opened against him on espionage charges carrying a punishment of up to 20 years behind bars.