Moscow court remands Japanese journalist Yuki Imai until December 12

Moscow's Lefortovsky District Court has remanded Hokkaido Shimbun journalist Yuki Imai in custody in an espionage case. His detention is scheduled to run until December 12.

Interfax reported the custody order, citing law enforcement sources. Kommersant also reported that the Lefortovsky court made the decision on October 13. The order concerns pretrial detention and is not a verdict on the charge.

Imai was detained in the Sakhalin region before leaving Russia and subsequently taken to Moscow. The case was opened under Article 276 of Russia's Criminal Code, which covers espionage.

The Federal Security Service alleges that he collected and stored information relating to Russia's defence capabilities for transfer to a Japanese intelligence agency. Those claims are the prosecution's allegations. Interfax says the offence carries a prison term of 10 to 20 years, but no sentence has been imposed on Imai.