Russia jails ex-US consular employee on security charges

FILE - In this photo taken from video provided by Lefortovo District Court, Robert Shonov, a Russian national who worked at the now-closed U.S. consulate in Vladivostok, is escorted by officers to the courtroom at the Lefortovo District Court in Moscow on May 18, 2023.

A court in Russia's far east said on Friday it had convicted Robert Shonov, a former U.S. consular employee, of illegally and covertly cooperating with the U.S. government to harm Russia's national security and had jailed him for nearly five years.