NIZHNY NOVGOROD (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th August, 2020) Ex-US marine Paul Whelan, serving a sentence in Russia for espionage, has arrived at the penal colony No 18 in Mordovia, where he will spend two weeks in quarantine, the regional public watchdog in charge of convicts' rights confirmed to Sputnik.
On Tuesday, Whelan's brother said, citing the UK Embassy and a representative of the Federal Penitentiary Service, that "Paul had arrived in the Republic of Mordovia last Saturday, August 1." According to David Whelan, after quarantine in IK-18, his brother will be "moved to his permanent camp, IK-17."
"Whelan has arrived at colony No 18. He will be quarantined there for two weeks. Then he will be transferred to another colony, to a strict-regime colony, in accordance with the sentence. Probably to IK-17 in Ozernyy [also in Mordovia]," the watchdog head, Valery Krutov, said.
He added that the watchdog's staff will visit Whelan if the latter requests.
Whelan, who is also a citizen of the UK, Canada and Ireland, was arrested in Russia in December 2018 on charges of espionage. A Moscow court sentenced him to 16 years on June 15. Whelan denies being involved in espionage and insists he was in Russia to attend a friend's wedding.
