Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich faced a closed-door trial in Yekaterinburg, Central Russia, on Wednesday, 15 months after having been arrested in the Russian city on espionage charges that he, his employer, and the US government all dispute, the Associated Press reported.
The 32-year-old journalist appeared in court in a glass defendant’s cage, his head shaved, dressed in a black-and-blue checkered shirt. The cage was secured with a yellow padlock.
Journalists were permitted to enter the courtroom for a few minutes just before the proceedings were concluded. According to the embassy, two consular personnel from the US Embassy in Moscow were also granted brief access to court.
The session lasted approximately two hours, with the next one planned for August 13, according to court authorities.
In an interview with the Associated Press, Jay Conti, executive vice president and general counsel of Dow Jones, the Journal’s publisher, condemned the trial as a “fraud.”
Gershkovich, an American-born son of Soviet immigrants, is the first Western journalist to be detained on espionage charges in post-Soviet Russia.
Authorities arrested Gershkovich as he was on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg, in the Ural Mountains, and claimed he was gathering “secret material” for the United States.
The State Department deems him “wrongfully detained,” requiring the US government to actively seek his release.
The Journal has worked hard to keep his case in the public spotlight, and it has become a hot topic in the months running up to the United States presidential election.
Gershkovich was arrested on March 29, 2023, and imprisoned at Moscow’s infamously deplorable Lefortovo Prison. He appeared healthy during court proceedings when his parole appeals were denied.
Gershkovich may face up to 20 years in jail if the court finds him guilty.