Russia convicts US reporter of espionage after trial widely seen as politically motivated

Yekaterinburg: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was convicted Friday of espionage and sentenced to 16 years in a maximum-security prison on charges that his employer and the US government have rejected as fabricated.

The conclusion of his swift and secretive trial in the country’s highly politicised legal system could potentially clear the way for a prisoner swap between Moscow and Washington.

Gershkovich, his head shaved, looked calm as he stood in a glass defendants’ cage in the Sverdlovsk Regional Court and listened impassively to the verdict. When the judge asked him if he understood it, the journalist replied yes.

After the judge finished reading the verdict, someone in the courtroom shouted, “Evan, we love you!” Closing arguments took place behind closed doors at the trial, where Gershkovich did not admit any guilt, according to the court’s press service. Prosecutors requested an 18-year sentence, but the judge opted for a shorter term.

“This disgraceful, sham conviction comes after Evan has spent 478 days in prison, wrongfully detained, away from his family and friends, prevented from reporting, all for doing his job as a journalist,” Dow Jones CEO and Wall Street Journal Publisher Almar Latour and Editor in Chief Emma Tucker said in a statement. “We will continue to do everything possible to press for Evan’s release and to support his family. Journalism is not a crime, and we will not rest until he’s released. This must end now,” the statement

added.