Former US Marine Paul Whelan, who was sentenced to sixteen years in prison for espionage by a Moscow court last week, will not appeal his sentence.
The Russian news agency Interfax reported this Tuesday, referring to Whelan’s lawyer.
Lawyer Vladimir Zherebenkov said that Whelan, who holds the US, British, Canadian and Irish passports, hopes to be exchanged in a prisoner exchange with the United States shortly.
Russia says Whelan, who was arrested in December 2018, was caught with a USB flash drive containing secret information.
He denies the charges and says he has been tricked.
Whelan, 50, says he was in Russia for a wedding and got a USB stick from an acquaintance who believed it contained vacation photos.