American Steven Hubbard convicted on charges of being a mercenary in Ukraine [Image source=EPA Yonhap News]
A 70-year-old American who contracted with the Ukrainian military and fought against Russia was sentenced to 6 years and 10 months in prison in Russia.
According to Russia's Sputnik news agency on the 7th (local time), the Moscow City Court ruled guilty against American Steven Hubbard (76) for participating in hostile acts on the side of the Ukrainian military and made this decision. It also ordered the confiscation of his property worth 142,000 hryvnias (approximately 4.5 million KRW).
The trial was mostly held behind closed doors, and Sputnik reported that Hubbard admitted guilt.
The AP news agency explained that this is known as the first case of an American being convicted for joining the Ukrainian military as a mercenary since Russia launched its "special military operation" in Ukraine in February 2022. Hubbard, originally from Michigan, USA, had been living in Izium, Kharkiv Oblast in northeastern Ukraine since 2014, and contracted with the Ukrainian military in February 2022. He served in the territorial defense unit of Izium and was captured by Russian forces in April of the same year.
Hubbard could have been sentenced to up to 15 years, but the Russian prosecution considered his age and set the sentence accordingly. Meanwhile, on the same day, the Voronezh court in western Russia additionally sentenced an American man, already serving a prison term, to 7 more years for violence inside the prison.
Regarding the recent increase in arrests of Americans in Russia, some interpret that Russia might be using them as bargaining chips to negotiate the return of Russians convicted in the West, including the US. Russia and the US exchanged prisoners on the largest scale since the Cold War in August.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
