(NewsNation) — When American basketball star Brittney Griner was released after 10 months as a prisoner in Russia, she was surprised that fellow American Paul Whelan wasn’t on board with her.
“When they closed the door,” she told ABC, “I was like, ‘are you serious? You’re not gonna let this man come home right now?’”
A prisoner for more than five years now, Whelan is not in a good way.
“He’s just disintegrating, and will continue to do so,” David Whelan said Saturday on “NewsNation Prime.” “His cognitive mental health is deteriorating. We’re starting to get a sense of that in phone calls. He’s got physical problems. He’s got a cracked tooth he can’t get fixed.”
Whelan has been in Russian custody since Dec. 28, 2018. He was in Russia to attend the wedding of a former fellow U.S. Marine, accused of espionage.
As for gaining his release, David Whelan says the current and former administrations don’t appear to be able to figure out how to do it.
“I think they’re (U.S. government) making it a priority, (but) I think that they’ve failed so far, and will continue to fail to find a way to bring Paul home. They still haven’t cracked the enigma for them about why Paul’s case is different.”
Whelan says his message to President Joe Biden is simple: “Keep working on it.”
And his message to his brother: “Stay strong.”