WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 21st April, 2020) US citizen Paul Whelan, detained in Moscow on charges of espionage, has not contacted his family by phone yet, his brother David Whelan told Sputnik on Monday.
"I'm not sure where my brother is but I'm pretty sure he has not been able to call anyone," David said.
A Moscow court has allowed Paul to make phone calls to his parents twice a month, the defendant's lawyer Vladimir Zherebenkov told Sputnik following a hearing earlier in the day.
David said he asked his brother's lawyers to share additional information on the possibility to communicate with the Whelan family.
"Since Paul has no access to an address book or contacts, we may need to get a phone number to him," David added.
The Russian authorities detained Paul, who is also a citizen of the United Kingdom, Canada and Ireland, at the end of 2018 on charges of espionage. If found guilty, Paul may face up to 20 years in prison.
Paul has maintained that he is innocent and insisted he came to Russia to attend a friend's wedding.
According to information provided to the Russian court, Paul had been visiting Russia regularly since 2007.
