Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reporter Evan Gershkovich was found guilty of spying by a Russian court Friday and sentenced to 16 years in prison.
Gershkovich is the first American journalist to be arrested in Russia on charges related to espionage since the Cold War, according to CNN. The 32-year-old’s case came to a “rapid conclusion,” CNN noted, as his trial started on June 26.
The journalist was arrested in the Ural Mountain town of Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and accused of spying for the CIA. The WSJ vehemently denies the accusation. Russian authorities have yet to offer public evidence to support their claims against him.
American Journalist Evan Gershkovich To Be Tried On Trumped-Up Spying Charges By Russian Regimehttps://t.co/ieLeIXqyKY
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) June 15, 2024
“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,” WSJ’s publisher Almar Latour and editor in chief Emma Tucker said in a statement on Friday. “We will continue to do everything possible to press for Evan’s release and to support his family.” (RELATED: Russian Court Sentences US Soldier To Nearly Four Years Behind Bars For Theft, Murder Threats)
Some have reportedly suggested the speed of the case relates to a potential prisoner swap between the U.S. and Kremlin. Precedent for such a move was set after American basketball player Brittney Griner was swapped with Russia’s “merchant of death” Viktor Bout in 2022. Contacts are apparently ongoing regarding this potential deal.
The town where Gershkovich was arrested is just 500 miles from the closed town of Mezhgorye, rumored to be where Putin’s alleged Armageddon bunker is hidden (along with a potentially massive underground military facility).
