‘OUTRAGEOUS’

Russian Court Extends U.S. Reporter Evan Gershkovich’s Detention

It means he’ll have spent at least a year in custody before his trial starts.

A Russian court on Friday extended for the fourth time the detention of American journalist Evan Gershkovich. The Wall Street Journal reporter was arrested in Russia last March on an allegation of espionage which has been denied by both the Journal and the Biden Administration, with the U.S. government declaring him wrongfully detained. The two-month extension to his detention means Gershkovich will remain in custody until March 30—a full year after he was originally apprehended. “It is chilling and outrageous that Evan has now spent 10 months of his life in prison, simply for doing his job,” the Journal and its parent company Dow Jones said. “While these are clearly sham proceedings about patently false charges, we intend to appeal today’s ruling, as we have in the past. Journalism is not a crime, and we continue to demand Evan’s immediate release.”