Authorities in Russia have arrested Evan Gershkovich, an American journalist working in the country.
Russia’s FSB security services said Gershkovich, who reports for the Wall Street Journal, “was collecting classified information about the activities of one of the enterprises of the Russian military industrial complex.”
Gershkovich has been charged with espionage, which carries a potential prison sentence in Russia of up to 20 years.
According to the Journal, Gershkovich was detained while working in the Urals city of Ekaterinburg.
According to the Russian daily newspaper Kommersant, Gershkovich will be brought to Mosow where he’ll be officially tried in court.
Gershkovich reports on Russia for the Journal’s Moscow bureau. According to the FSB, he is accredited to work in Russia as a journalist by the Kremlin’s Foreign Ministry.
The Wall Street Journal said Thursday that it “vehemently denies the allegations from the FSB and seeks the immediate release of our trusted and dedicated reporter, Evan Gershkovich. We stand in solidarity with Evan and his family.”
