Is Paul Whelan Married? Relationship Explained

Paul Whelan is a former US Marine who was imprisoned in Russia after being accused of spying. He drew international attention after the Russian authorities let him go because of a United States–Russia prisoner swap in Ankara, Turkey, on Thursday, August 1. And now, people want to know about his family and whether he has a wife.

Does Paul Whelan have a wife?

According to Detroit Free Press, Paul Whelan is unmarried and has no children. He has three siblings: twin brother David, sister Elizabeth, and a second brother Andrew. Whelan, whose full name is Paul Nicholas Whelan, is originally from Ottawa, Ontario, where he was born in March 1970. Whelan’s parents, Edward and Rosemary Whelan, relocated to Ann Arbor, Michigan, when he was fairly young. Aside from the US, Whelan holds passports of three other countries: Canada, Ireland, and the UK.

In 1988, Whelan graduated from Huron High School in Ann Arbor along with his brother David. He joined the Marine Corps Reserve in 1994 and started working for the American staffing company Kelly Services in 2001. Two years later, he opted for a military leave from the company to resume duties with the the Marine Corps Reserve. He served in Iraq at one point and was part of Operation Iraqi Freedom. In 2008, Whelan received a court-martial conviction for larceny and other counts and was subsequently handed a bad-conduct discharge.

When the Russian authorities arrested Whelan, he was serving as director of global security and investigations for BorgWarner. It is an automotive and e-mobility supplier headquartered in Michigan. His home address was in Novi, MI, at the time.

A court in Moscow found Whelan guilty of espionage in June 2020 and handed him a 16-year sentence. Ultimately, Whelan and journalist Evan Gershkovich were part of a prisoner swap deal between the US and Russia that got him back to his home. Whelan’s twin, David, thanked the media for covering his brother’s ordeal in a statement. “This is now Paul’s story to tell and I’m sure he will, in time, communicate how he wants to tell it,” he added. “It is vital that he be given agency over his life again, something the Kremlin took away for so many years.” (via The Detroit News)