The charges against him are related to alleged cooperation with a foreign state. The verdict was delivered in the city of Vladivostok, where the U.S. Consulate was once operational.
As reported by Newsweek, Shonov, a Russian national, was taken into custody in May 2023 by Russia's top domestic security agency, the FSB. The charges against him included "gathering information about the special military operation" in Ukraine, observing a partial mobilization in Russian regions, and evaluating its potential to incite "population protest activities" in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election.
Shonov was prosecuted under a recently enacted Russian law that forbids "cooperation on a confidential basis with a foreign state, international or foreign organization to assist their activities clearly aimed against Russia's security." Critics and human rights champions argue that the broad language of the law allows it to be weaponized against any Russian with international connections. The law carries a maximum prison sentence of eight years.
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The U.S. State Department has previously acknowledged that Shonov had been a part of the U.S. Consulate in Vladivostok for over a quarter of a century. The consulate was closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and has not reopened since. Following a directive from the Russian government in April 2021, which ordered the dismissal of all local staff at U.S. diplomatic missions in Russia, Shonov began working for a contractor supporting the U.S. Embassy in Moscow.
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Matthew Miller, a spokesperson for the State Department in 2023, stated that Shonov's role at the time of his arrest was "to compile media summaries of press items from publicly available Russian media sources." Shonov was held in Moscow's Lefortovo Prison, notorious for its harsh conditions, during the investigation. His trial, however, was conducted in the Primorsky District Court in Vladivostok.
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In addition to his prison sentence, which will be served in a general-regime penal colony, Shonov was slapped with a fine of 1 million rubles (approximately $10,000). He will also face additional restrictions for 16 months after his release, as per the court's ruling.
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The U.S. Embassy in Moscow issued a statement on Friday denouncing the charges against Shonov, labeling them as "completely false and unfounded." The embassy further criticized the Russian government's increasing intimidation campaign against its own citizens, as exemplified by the criminal prosecution of Mr. Shonov.
