Russian prosecutors on Monday called for a former US marine charged with spying to be sentenced to 18 years in
prison, after a closed-door trial denounced by
Washington and his family.
Paul Whelan, 50, was detained in
Moscow in December 2018 for allegedly receiving state secrets, but he insists he was framed when he took a USB drive from an acquaintance thinking it contained holiday photos.
Whelan's lawyer told reporters that prosecutors had requested 18 years for his client in a strict-regime penal colony, just short of the maximum 20-year sentence.