Russia Sentences US Reporter Gershkovich to 16 Years in Prison For Espionage

On July 19, a Russian court handed down a 16-year prison sentence to Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on charges of espionage widely perceived as fabricated.

Gershkovich was arrested in March 2023 while reporting in Yekaterinburg in the Urals, marking the first instance since the Cold War of a US journalist being accused of spying in Russia. He has been detained at Moscow's Lefortovo prison but was transferred back to Yekaterinburg for trial.

Moscow alleges that Gershkovich was gathering classified information on Russia's military capabilities under CIA direction, a claim dismissed as absurd by Gershkovich, the Wall Street Journal, and the US State Department. He had been officially accredited as a journalist by the Russian Foreign Ministry.

During the trial, Gershkovich pleaded not guilty. The investigation did not provide public evidence of spying, only stating that the journalist was caught “by the hand” and that he was working for American intelligence.

“Even as Russia orchestrates its shameful sham trial, we continue to do everything we can to push for Evan’s immediate release,” the Wall Street Journal stated on Thursday, July 18.