Detained journalist Evan Gershkovich’s close friends speak of his 12-month ‘nightmare’ in a Russian prison

One of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich’s closest friends speaks of his mate’s 12-month ‘nightmare’ in a Russian prison.

A close friend of detained Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, Pjotr Sauer, speaks regularly to the journalist who tells him of the nightmare he has been living for the past 12 months holed up in a Russian prison.

Sauer, The Guardian’s Russia correspondent, explains that it’s been “an incredibly tough year for his (Evan’s) friends, for his family and Evan himself.”

“I’m so impressed by how strong Evan is, how he’s coping with all the difficulties he’s facing, he keeps mentally and physically strong, he’s in good spirits,” Sauer said, reflecting on a recent letter he’d received from Gershkovich.

“He’s optimistic even though he’s been in very terrible conditions for one year now in one of Russia’s most notorious prisons.”

Gershkovich, 32, was arrested on March 29 last year and he remains detained in Moscow’s Lefortovo prison and he could face a criminal trial over espionage charges which both he and his employer have vehemently denied.

Sauer, who is based in Amsterdam, said the pair met in 2017 and worked together for three years at the Moscow Times, becoming colleagues and great friends.

“There’s days where we are still in shock, but after a year you learn how to live with it but it doesn't get any easier for sure,” he told The Australian.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich with friends Polina Ivanova, journalist at the Financial Times and The Guardian's Russian correspondent Pjotr Sauer in Moscow in 2020.

Sauer, together with some of Gershkovich’s other close friends set up an email account for him – [e-mail] – allowing people to write to the WSJ reporter and to date they have received more than 5000 messages.

“People can send letters, they are read then translated into Russian because they have to be in Russian for the prison system and we send those letters to Evan and he sees them and reads them,” Sauer said.

“He’s writes back to his friends and this is so important for Evan to be able to communicate with the outside world and to see that he is not alone and not forgotten.

“We are more than happy to do this because there are so many people that care for Evan, he’s such a social guy and it’s been great to see the support he is getting.”

Gershkovich has been sharing correspondence with his friends, family and supporters on a weekly basis and while Sauer is guarded on exactly what his imprisoned friend does say, he shares some insight.

“We really just talk about our lives, he wants to feel engaged with how my life is going, what I’m up to and what stories I’m writing about and how I’m seeing,” he said.

“There’s jokes and stories and football updates, he’s a huge Arsenal fan, we try to make it as normal as possible.

“We also send him lots of long reads because he loves reading.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin in February told American broadcaster Tucker Carlson in an interview that a deal could be reached to free Gershkovich.

“The special services are in contact with one another,” he said.

“They are talking … I believe an agreement can be reached.”

Sauer, who describes the accusations against his friend as “crazy bogus charges”, said he hoped his friend could be released soon.

The WSJ is owned by News Corporation – also publisher of The Australian.