Lawyer admits Paul Whelan was exchanging classified documents in Russia
Paul Whelan's lawyer admits his client was caught exchanging classified documents but it may have been an accident.
On January 22, Paul Whelan's lawyer Vladimir Zerebenkov told Sputnik that his client had some "state secret" documents at the time of his arrest, but that Paul Whelan himself may not have understood the importance of these documents. "I can confirm that at the time of his detention, Whelan had some documents containing state secrets. But I cannot go into details," said lawyer Zherebenkov.
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Paul Whelan appeared in court on January 22. |
But Mr Zheberenkov said his client may not have understood the significance of the documents in his possession. "How did he get them and did Whelan know he had prohibited documents? All of these are possible," added Mr Whelan's lawyer.
The lawyer also informed that former US Marine Paul Whelan was said to be looking for information about Russian culture. Paul was more interested by Russian security forces when he "had a deep interest in Russian heritage", including photos of Orthodox churches. Whelan's lawyer said that his client was looking for photos and information about cultural heritage in Russia when he was arrested. He did not even have time to download the photos. "Mr. Whelan is very interested in Russia, he is educated in cultural studies. He has friends in Russia, so it is not surprising that he wants to know and have information about Russian culture," revealed Lawyer Zheberenkov.
Lawyer Zherebenkov said that even prosecutors did not have access to the secret evidence being used to charge Paul Whelan and therefore he did not know much more.
The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said Paul Whelan was detained in Moscow "while he was carrying out espionage duties". The FSB has opened a criminal case against Mr. Whelan under Article 276 of the Russian Criminal Code (espionage), which, if found guilty, carries a penalty of 10 to 20 years in prison.
