Original Material
Alleged Estonian spy sentenced to 15 years in Russian prison
A Russian court has sentenced Estonian citizen Eston Kohver to 15 years in a high-security prison in Russia. In addition, he has been fined 100,000 rubles ($1,525).
The Prosecutor General had asked for a sentence of 16 years and a fine of 200,000 rubles ($3,045). Kohver maintains that he is innocent of any crime.
The court ruled that he is guilty of spying, smuggling, carrying arms, and illegally crossing the state border.
- Eston Kohver, a police officer from Tartu, Estonia, was detained by Russian police in September 2014.
- According to the Russian security services (FSB), Kohver was detained in Russia’s Pskov region while carrying out a spy operation. The FSB says Kohver was found to be in possession of a gun, 5,000 euros in cash, and bugging devices.
- Estonian police maintain that Kohver was kidnapped by armed men on the Estonian side of the Estonia-Russia border, and taken to Russia by force.