U.S. ambassador in Moscow visits journalist Gershkovich in pre-trial detention facility - embassy

MOSCOW. March 21 (Interfax) - U.S. Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy visited Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich at the Lefortovo pre-trial detention facility on Thursday, the United States embassy in Moscow said on Telegram.

The visit took place a week before it will be a year since Gershkovich was detained by Russian authorities, which the embassy described as "wrongful," it said.

On March 29, 2023, the public relations department of the Federal Security Service (FSB) said that Gershkovich, a U.S. citizen born in 1991, was detained and charged with espionage. According to the FSB, Gershkovich was "acting on the orders of the U.S., gathering information about a Russian defense plant that constitutes a state secret."

"The American was detained in Yekaterinburg while trying to obtain secret information," FSB said then.

Russian presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov said later that Gershkovich was caught red-handed. Gershkovich pled not guilty, his defense team said. U.S. authorities said his arrest was wrongful and are seeking to secure his release.

On January 26, Moscow's Lefortovsky District Court upheld an investigator's motion and extended the arrest of Gershkovich until March 30.