Russia Sentences Former US Consulate Employee to Nearly 5 Years in Prison

A former U.S. consulate employee was sentenced to nearly five years in prison in Russia this week on charges related to collaboration with a foreign state.

The former consulate employee, identified as Robert Shonov, was sentenced by a court in Vladivostok, Russia, on Friday.

Robert Shonov

Shonov, a Russian citizen and former employee of the US Consulate in Vladivostok, was arrested in May 2023. The FSB, Russia’s top internal security agency, accused him of “collecting information about a special military operation” in Ukraine and monitoring partial mobilization in Ukraine. Assessing Russian regions and its impact on “population protest activities” ahead of the 2024 presidential election.

Shonov faces charges under a recent Russian law that prohibits “collaboration on a secret basis with a foreign state, international or foreign organization to assist its activities clearly aimed at the security of Russia.”

Critics and human rights advocates argue that the law’s sweeping language allows it to target all Russians with international ties. The crime is expected to carry a prison sentence of up to eight years.

The US State Department stated last year that Shonov had worked at the US Consulate in Vladivostok for more than 25 years. The consulate was closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and has remained closed since.

Following the Russian government’s April 2021 directive mandating the firing of all local staff at U.S. diplomatic missions in Russia, the State Department said Shonov began working for a contractor supporting the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.

In 2023, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at the time of his arrest that Shonov’s role was to “compile media summaries of press matters from publicly available Russian media sources.”

Shonov was detained in Moscow’s Lefortovo Prison, known for its harsh conditions, as part of the investigation. However, his trial took place in the Primorsky District Court in Vladivostok.

According to the court’s decision, in addition to the prison sentence to be served in a general regime penal colony, Shonov was sentenced to a fine of 1 million rubles (just over $10,000) and will face further restrictions for 16 months following his release.

Response to Shonov’s Sentence

In a statement on Friday, the US Embassy in Moscow condemned the accusations against Shonov and said the accusations against him were “completely false and unfounded”.

“The criminal prosecution of Mr. Shonov only highlights the intimidation campaign the Russian government is increasingly waging against its own citizens,” the US Embassy in Moscow said in a statement. he said.

This article contains news from the Associated Press.