A spy charge, a Russian jail and a swap for an assassin: the story of Evan Gershkovich – podcast

American journalist Evan Gershkovich talks about his arrest by the Russian intelligence services in 2023, his 16-month detention, and the swap deal that eventually took him home. Get in touch at tif.questions@theguardian.com Evan Gershkovich was in an American-style steakhouse – with fake deer heads on the walls – talking to a contact in an eastern Russian city when masked agents of the Russian intelligence service burst in. ‘It was a trap from the start,’ he says. The American journalist who was working for the Wall Street Journal was detained, beaten and charged with espionage. Evan talks to Annie Kelly about his arrest, what happened during his detention in a high-security jail, and the swap deal that finally took him home. Continue reading...