Russia's FSB security service announced Friday that it has sentenced U.S. citizen Eugene Spector to 15 years in prison for stealing biotechnology secrets from the Pentagon.
“Americans, acting in the interests of the Department of Defense and its affiliated commercial organizations, will be responsible for the subsequent creation of systems by the United States on various biotechnology and biomedical topics, including those that constitute state secrets. “Collected information and transferred it to foreign parties. Conducting rapid genetic testing of Russian citizens,” the FSB said.
Russian media coverage of the trial did not show Did Spector plead guilty or not guilty? The FSB usually announces that a defendant will plead guilty or confess during interrogation.
Spectre, born In 1972, he immigrated to the United States in Leningrad (now St. Petersburg) under the name Evgeny Mironovich and became an American citizen, but after that Moved He returned to Russia and became the top executive of a medical device conglomerate called Medpolymerprom Group. A company that specializes in manufacturing anti-cancer drugs.
In 2020, Spectre Paid The bribe was given to Anastasia Aleseeva, a close aide of former Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich. A Moscow court convicted him of bribery in 2021 and sentenced him to three-and-a-half years in prison, while Aleseeva was sentenced to 12 years.
Mr. Spector was indicted on additional charges of espionage in August 2023, but the details of the charges have been kept secret until now. He was sentenced to an additional 13 years in prison by the Moscow City Court in a closed session on Tuesday, bringing his total sentence to a maximum of 15 years.
Olga Romanova, leader of the human rights organization “Russia Behind Bars'' said of new york times (NYT) said Tuesday that Spector's vague spying charges and closed-door trial followed “the exact same pattern” Russia has followed with other foreign nationals it planned to use in prisoner swaps.
The Russians prefer to impose heavy prison sentences on such individuals right before doing business with a foreign government, to deflect accusations that they are just holding convenient foreigners hostage. wall street journal Reporter Evan Gershkovich, released In a large-scale prisoner exchange that took place in August 2024, he was an example of a prisoner who was sentenced to a heavy sentence on a frivolous spying charge shortly before his release.
