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Moscow court prolongs arrest of US national charged with spying until December 29

The court session was held behind closed doors

Paul Whelan Vladimir Gerdo/TASS

Paul Whelan

© Vladimir Gerdo/TASS

MOSCOW, October 24. /TASS/. Moscow’s Lefortovo Court has extended the arrest of US citizen Paul Whelan charged with spying against Russia on Thursday, TASS reported from the courtroom.

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“The court satisfies the investigators’ motion and will prolong the duration of Whelan’s arrest until December 29,” the judge announced.

The court session on extending the US citizen’s arrest was held behind closed doors, since there is classified information in the case, according to the investigators.

US citizen Paul Whelan, aged 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) informed that Whelan had been detained on December 28, 2018 in Moscow while on a spy mission. A criminal investigation was opened against him on espionage charges that stipulate penalties of up to 20 years behind bars.

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