NEW YORK, June 14. /TASS/. The relatives of the US citizen arrested in Russia on charges of spying, Paul Whelan, do not expect any positive ruling on the petition of appeal filed by Whelan’s lawyer against the Lefortovo Court’s ruling to extend his detention term, Paul’s brother, David Whelan, said in a letter sent to a TASS correspondent by e-mail.

"The appeal is a reprise of the appeal process his defense counsel attempted in January," he noted. "We expect a similar result, which forces Paul to remain in Russia and behind bars for another 3 months."

The Moscow City Court will study the appeal on June 20.

US citizen Paul Whelan, 48, who also holds British, Canadian and Irish passports, is a global security chief at BorgWarner, a Michigan-based automotive components company.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) earlier said Whelan had been detained on December 28, 2018 in Moscow while on an alleged spy mission. A criminal investigation was opened against him on espionage charges carrying a punishment of up to 20 years behind bars.