Paul Whelan Talks About Life in Russian Labor Camp

Paul Whelan, a Marine veteran who was arrested by Russia in 2018 on what the U.S. found to be fabricated charges of espionage, opened up to CBS on what life was like in a Russian labor camp.

Whelan told "Face the Nation" that every time he expected to be freed in exchange for the U.S. releasing someone Russia wanted, he was always disappointed.

For example, in December of 2022, Whelan was summoned to the prison warden's office in Mordovia, more than seven hours east of Moscow, where a U.S. official told him that WNBA player Brittney Griner was released in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Whelan was two years into his 16-year sentence after being arrested by Russia. At that point, Washington and Moscow had exchanged Marine veteran Trevor Reed for convicted drug smuggler Konstantin Yaroshenko. Whelan had expected to be freed along with Reed.

Whelan believes he was targeted, saying that "I hadn't done anything. I hadn't committed espionage." At the time, Whelan was the global head of security for auto parts supplier BorgWarner.

BorgWarner laid off Whelan about a year into his detention.

"If you can call an act by an employer un-American, that was un-American. What really bothered me, wasn't too much losing my job, but that BorgWarner continued to do business in Russia while I was being held prisoner there. They refused to cooperate with the U.S. government. They refused to cooperate with people that were trying to help me. … They haven't done anything to support me or my family," Whelan said.

The company referred to its statement from August when Whelan was freed when asked about this, stating that his trip was personal, not business-related.

Whelan noted that his release negotiations over the past few years played with his mind.

He was kept at Moscow's notorious Lefortovo Prison for the first two years of his detainment, where the lights were kept on for 24 hours a day in his cell. At the labor camp, he was woken up every two hours every night for four years.

"Getting off that sleep pattern has been very, very difficult. It is still tremendously difficult to sleep for six or eight hours at a time," Whelan said.

The deal that finally released Whelan hinged on President Biden being able to persuade German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to release convicted FSB assassin Vadim Krasikov. Krasikov was one of the eight Russians released from Western countries in exchange for Russia releasing 16 prisoners. The swap occurred on August 1st of this year.

Whelan was held in solitary confinement in the five days before his release.

Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were waiting for him on the tarmac when his plane landed at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.