The brother of an American detained in Russia for alleged spying says the ex-Marine might be caught in a diplomatic tug-of-war between the two powers, and the family fears he could be convicted on flimsy evidence.
But in an interview with AFP, David Whelan said they have faith that the US government will be able to bring his brother home.
He was arrested on December 28 "while carrying out an act of espionage," Russia's FSB security service said.
"There are no details about the circumstances of his arrest, so it's hard not to connect it as merely tugging between the two countries for whatever reason," David Whelan said in Newmarket, Ontario, north of Toronto.
"I'm very worried, particularly because there's no transparency for the Russian legal system," the brother said.
"We have a great deal of concern that he will be charged without sufficient evidence, he'll be convicted."
Asked by reporters on Sunday about Whelan's case, Trump said only: "We're looking into that."
"We have faith that they're working on it," David Whelan told AFP, adding that the family is hopeful that "the ridiculousness of this whole situation will eventually cause the US government to step forward and to have him brought home."
Whelan held a British passport, as well as others, and on Friday Britain's Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said "we don't agree with individuals being used in diplomatic chess games."
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