The Moscow city court has found Ukrainian journalist Roman Sushchenko guilty of espionage and sentenced him to 12 years in a high-security colony, the RIA Novosti news agency has reported.
This is less than what prosecutors requested. On 28 May, they demanded a 14-year imprisonment for Sushchenko.
The court held closed hearings in the case because it was marked "completely confidential".
Sushchenko, a French correspondent of the Ukrinform news agency, was detained in Moscow on 30 September 2016 in violation of international regulations. He arrived in Russia on a private family visit. On 7 October, he was charged with espionage.
The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed that Sushchenko was a member of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Defence Ministry and had been collecting confidential information about the Russian Armed Forces and the Russian Guard. The Ukrainian Main Intelligence Directorate dismissed the allegations.
The court started hearing his case on 27 March 2018. Sushchenko did not plead guilty.