Ivan Safronov, a former journalist and adviser to the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, accused of treason against the state, stands inside a defendant’s cage while attending a court hearing in Moscow, Russia, on September 5. (Photo: Moscow City Court Press Service/Handout/Archyde.com)
In the most high-profile treason case in recent years, the Moscow City Court on Monday sentenced Ivan Safronov, a former journalist and adviser to the head of the Russian space agency Roscosmos, to 22 years in prison, a Moscow correspondent reported. RIA Novosti from the room.
“[El tribunal descarta] sentence Safronov to a 22-year sentence to be served in a high-security prison,” the judicial board announced the decision. In addition, he was sentenced to two years of restricted liberty after his release and a fine of 500,000 rubles .
The defense has 10 days to appeal this decision, which has not yet entered into force, according to RIA
more background: Safronov was arrested by the Federal Security Service (FSB) in July 2020 after being accused of collecting sensitive state data on Russia’s military and technical developments, as well as defense and security, and handing it over to NATO.
As a journalist, Safronov specialized in reporting on military and space issues for the Vedomosti and Kommersant newspapers before moving on to work as an adviser to former Roscosmos chief Dmitry Rogozin.
The details of the case were not officially released, as it was dealt with behind closed doors due to the seriousness of the charges. Safronov’s lawyers claimed last week that the prosecutor offered the journalist to plead guilty in exchange for a reduced sentence of 12 years, which he refused.
Some of Russia’s remaining independent media outlets, including Meduza, Novaya Gazeta and TVRain, among others, published a statement in support of Ivan Safronov on Monday, demanding the journalist’s release and calling for the alleged violations to be investigated. legal in the case.
“It is clear to us that the reason for Ivan’s persecution is not ‘treason’, which is not confirmed by anything, but his journalistic work and the materials he published without taking into account the opinion of the Ministry of Defense and the authorities. Russians,” the statement says.