Frenchman Laurent Vinatier, suspected of espionage in Russia, is placed in pre-trial detention until August 5

Frenchman Laurent Vinatier, arrested Thursday in Moscow and suspected of espionage, will be placed in pre-trial detention until August 5, according to the court decision Zamoskvoretsky of Moscow ordered Friday June 7. The Court pronounced this decision, at the request of the investigators, although the accused presented “apologies” for not having registered as a “foreign agent”.

His lawyer Alexei Sinitsyn assured that his client “did not know” that he was obliged to register under this infamous label. He requested his placement under house arrest in Moscow, with his wife, and not in a detention center.

According to the Russian Investigative Committee, Laurent Vinatier, collaborator of a Swiss NGO, is suspected of having collected military information and of having violated the Russian law on foreign agents. “L’accused (…) carried out targeted collection of information in the field of military and military-technical activities of the Russian Federation”, Russian authorities announced on Thursday.

This arrest, which comes as Franco-Russian relations continue to deteriorate, caused Emmanuel Macron to react. The President of the Republic confirmed the man’s arrest and explained that he “did not work for France”.