Eugene Spector Sentenced for Espionage in Russia

Eugene Spector, a US citizen, was sentenced to 15 years in a maximum-security penal colony in Russia after being convicted of espionage for allegedly passing biotechnology secrets to the United States. The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) claimed that Spector acted on behalf of the Pentagon, gathering sensitive biomedical data to assist in creating a genetic screening system for the Russian population. Prior to this conviction, he was already serving a 3.5-year sentence for bribery, stemming from a case involving free trip vouchers to an aide of a former Russian deputy prime minister. The specifics of his espionage trial were not disclosed, and it remains unclear how he pleaded to the charges. Spector, who was born in Russia but later moved to the US, previously chaired a company involved in cancer treatment. His case reflects heightened tensions and accusations of espionage against American citizens amid ongoing geopolitical conflicts.