U.S journalist Evan Gershkovich appeared in a Russian court Wednesday for the start of a secret trial in which he faces false accusations of espionage.
The Wall Street Journal reporter is one on several U.S. citizens currently detained in Russia. The U.S government considers many of them to be unfairly detained, or detained for political reasons.
Evan Gershkovich
Natalia Kolesnikova/AFP/Getty
Gershkovich was detained in March 2023 on false charges of espionage. Both the U.S. government and the Journal have vehemently denied the allegations, calling them baseless and demanding his immediate release.
The U.S. government considers him one of several citizens who have been “wrongfully detained”.
On Tuesday, WSJ editor in chief Emma Tucker said in an open letter to readers that “this travesty of justice […] has gone on for far too long.”
Tucker added, “This bogus accusation of espionage will inevitably lead to a bogus conviction for an innocent man.”
Alsu Kurmasheva
AP Photo
Alsu Kurmasheva, a dual U.S.-Russian citizen and journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was detained in May. Russian authorities accused her of failing to register as a foreign agent, a charge that has been used increasingly against journalists and non-governmental organizations in Russia.
Paul Whelan
KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP
Paul Whelan, a former U.S. Marine, has been held in Russia since December 2018. He was convicted of espionage in June 2020 and sentenced to 16 years in prison. Whelan and the U.S. government maintain his innocence, asserting that he was in Russia for a friend’s wedding when he was arrested. Whelan is also considered wrongfully detained.
Robert Gilman
Robert Gilman was sentenced to four-and-a-half years in prison in October 2022 for attacking a police officer on a train while drunk. Gilman said via his lawyers that he did not remember the incident, and had “apologized to Russia” and to the officer.
Ksenia Karelina
AP Photo
Businesswoman Ksenia Karelina was detained in Moscow in March. She faces accusations of gathering funds to support the Ukrainian military, which she and her legal team assert are unfounded and politically motivated.
Karelina has U.S. citizenship through her marriage to an American, according to independent Russian news outlet Mediazona, cited by the Associated Press. She had returned to Russia from Los Angeles to visit family.
Marc Fogel
Marc Fogel, a former diplomat and teacher, was arrested in August 2021 for possessing marijuana, which he says was being used for medicinal purposes. Fogel had previously worked at the Anglo-American School in Moscow.
Gordon Black
PAVEL KOROLYOV/AFP/Getty Images
Gordon Black was an active duty U.S. staff sergeant based in South Korea, who was detained on May 2 in Vladivostok for stealing 10,000 rubles from his Russian girlfriend.
On June 19, a court found him guilty on both counts and sentenced him to three years and nine months in a penal colony. U.S. officials said Black broke army regulations by travelling to Russia via China without authorization.
Robert Romanov Woodland
Entrepreneur Robert Romanov Woodland was detained in St. Petersburg in February on charges of tax evasion. He was adopted by U.S. citizens out of Russia, and travelled between the two countries regularly.
Eugene Spector
Eugene Spector, an engineer, was detained in April on charges of industrial espionage. He was born in Russia and later moved to the U.S. He had previously pled guilty to helping bribe an assistant to an ex-Russian deputy prime minister.
Newsweek contacted the U.S. State Department and the Russian Foreign Ministry for comment.
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