Russian court rejects US reporter Gershkovich's detention appeal

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was detained in March while on a reporting trip and charged with espionage, stands behind a glass wall of an enclosure for defendants, while U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy and lawyers Tatyana Nozhkina and Maria Korchagina appear in a courtroom before a hearing to consider an appeal against Gershkovich's detention, in Moscow, Russia, April 18, 2023. REUTERS/Yulia Morozova

A Moscow court on Tuesday rejected an appeal from U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich to be freed from pre-trial detention, meaning he will stay in a former KGB prison until at least May 29 while a spying case against him is investigated.

Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, denies the espionage charges. He looked calm and smiled as he stood in a glass and metal cage before the ruling, wearing a checked shirt, with his arms folded.