Russia Sentences US Citizen to 15 Years for Alleged Spying Charges

A Russian court has sentenced a US citizen, Gene Spector, to 15 years in a strict-regime penal colony on charges of espionage. The sentencing was confirmed by RIA Novosti news agency on Tuesday, with limited details disclosed due to the secret nature of the case.

The trial, held behind closed doors, concluded with the Moscow City Court delivering the judgment. Spector, born Yevgeny Mironovich in 1972 in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), holds dual Russian and US citizenship. He had been living in Saint Petersburg with his family prior to his detention.

Photographs from the courtroom show Spector in the defendant’s cage, wearing glasses and a dark jacket. The charges against him have not been publicly detailed.

Previous Conviction
Spector’s legal troubles date back to 2020, when he was detained and later sentenced to four years in prison for acting as an intermediary in a bribery case involving luxury holidays for an aide to former Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich. After a retrial, his sentence was reduced by six months.

Broader Context
This is not the first case of a US citizen being detained and sentenced in Russia. Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was convicted of espionage earlier this year and released in August. Such cases have strained US-Russia relations, with some detainees being freed through prisoner exchanges.

As tensions between the two nations remain high, the sentencing of Gene Spector underscores the complex dynamics of international relations and the ongoing scrutiny of espionage cases within Russia.