A Moscow court sentenced French researcher Laurent Vinatier on October 14 to three years in prison on a charge of violating "foreign agent" laws, Russia's Investigative Committee said. Vinatier, 48, was arrested in June, allegedly for spying and for failing to register as a foreign agent. Russian investigators claimed he pleaded guilty to illegally obtaining information about the Russian military. Prosecutors sought three years and three months in prison for Vinatier. His defense team had asked the court to fine him instead of sentencing him to prison, calling the prosecutor's request "too harsh." Vinatier is an adviser for the Geneva-based Center for Humanitarian Dialogue, a nonprofit conflict-resolution organization, and "travels regularly for his work," according to his employer. France denounced the "extreme severity" of the sentence and called for his immediate release. French Foreign Ministry spokesman Christophe Lemoine said Russia's "foreign agent" law "contributes to a systematic violation of fundamental freedoms in Russia."
Russian Court Jails French Researcher For 3 Years
Laurent Vinatier (right) is escorted into a courtroom in Moscow on June 7.