U.S. reporter Evan Gershkovich appear in court in Russia for hearing on espionage charges

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has appeared in court in Russia for the second hearing in his trial on espionage charges

Russia US Reporter (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich appeared in court in Russia on Thursday for the second hearing in his trial on espionage charges, the court said.

Gershkovich, his employer and the U.S. government vehemently deny the charges against him.

Gershkovich was accused by the Russian Prosecutor General’s office of “gathering secret information” on orders from the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a plant about 150 kilometers (90 miles) north of Yekaterinburg that produces and repairs tanks and other military equipment.

The trial is taking place behind closed doors in Yekaterinburg, a city in the Ural Mountains where the 32-year-old journalist was detained while on a reporting trip in March 2023.