A Moscow court on Tuesday said jailed US journalist Evan Gershkovich would remain in pre-trial detention until at least March 30, ensuring he will spend at least a year behind bars in a Russian jail.
Russian prosecutors have charged Wall Street Journal reporter Gershkovich with espionage — the first time such a criminal accusation has been levelled against a Western reporter in Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union.
Gershkovich, his employers and the White House all reject the charges, which carry a maximum sentence of 20 years.
“Gershkovich will remain in custody until March 30, 2024,” the Moscow courts service said in a statement Tuesday following a hearing at the Moscow City Court.
The appeal was a technical challenge against an earlier decision to extend Gershkovich’s pre-trial detention. It did not concern the substance of the case.
His shock arrest by FSB counterintelligence agents in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg last March while on a reporting trip triggered uproar in Washington.
And the United States has slammed the Kremlin over his ongoing detention, which will hit the one-year mark on March 29.
“The charges against Evan are baseless. The Russian government has locked Evan up simply for reporting news,” US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy, who attended the hearing, said outside the court Tuesday.
President Vladimir Putin said earlier this month he would like to see Gershkovich released as part of a prisoner exchange.
In remarks to conservative American TV commentator Tucker Carlson, he said talks between Russia and the United States about a possible swap were ongoing.
The Russian leader made clear he wanted any deal to involve the release of a Russian jailed in Germany for killing a Chechen dissident.
