Russia hands ex-energy executive 15 years in jail for spying

World+Biz

Reuters
29 December, 2020, 03:30 pm
Last modified: 29 December, 2020, 03:33 pm
Karina Tsurkan, who denied any wrongdoing, was detained in June 2018. Some of the details of her case are not publicly known and are classified due to the sensitive nature of the allegations

Russia sentenced a former board member of state energy holding company Inter RAO to 15 years in jail on Tuesday after finding her guilty of spying for Moldova at a trial held behind closed doors, her defence team said.

Karina Tsurkan, who denied any wrongdoing, was detained in June 2018. Some of the details of her case are not publicly known and are classified due to the sensitive nature of the allegations.

Tsurkan said in an interview with the RBC media holding that Russia's Federal Security Service had accused her of being recruited by the Moldovan intelligence service in 2004 and handing over classified information in 2015.

The information concerned Russian electricity supplies to Ukraine, the TASS news agency reported.

Tsurkan plans to appeal the sentence, her defence team said.

The prosecution had asked the court to jail her for 18 years.

Related Topics

Russia / Spying

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