WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich is Sentenced to 16 Years in a Russian Penal Colony

WSJ Reporter SENTENCED to RUSSIAN Prison

The first American journalist to be charged with espionage since Nicholas Daniloff in 1986, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was found guilty of espionage on Friday by a Russian court. The case has been widely condemned as a scam by the US government and the journalist’s employer. Gershkovich will spend 16 years in a high-security penal colony.

 

After being detained in Yekaterinburg in March 2023, Gershkovich was charged with spying for the CIA by Russian authorities. They claimed that Gershkovich was gathering classified information about a Russian defense contractor “under instructions from the CIA” and “using painstaking conspiratorial methods.” The Russian government has not produced any publicly available evidence to bolster its claims, so the U.S. State Department demanded his immediate release. He was imprisoned in a tiny cell at the notorious Lefortovo Prison in Moscow during the Stalin era, with only an hour each day for walking.

 

Journal publisher Almar Latour and Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker said, “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. We will continue to do everything possible to press for Evan’s release and to support his family. Since journalism is not a crime, we won’t stop until he is freed. This needs to stop right away.”

 

The plea from Gershkovich’s legal team to be released from prison and placed under home arrest or to be granted bail was denied by Russian Authorities.

 

Referencing FSB agent Vadim Krasikov, Russian President Vladimir Putin has made suggestions that he would exchange Gershkovich for Russians detained abroad. However, in response to the notion of a conversation, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov declared on Friday, “I’m leaving that question without an answer.” This is a particularly sensitive topic since there is an accusation of spying.