MOSCOW, Russia –
Russian prosecutors asked for a seven-year sentence in the trial of a U.S. citizen accused of fighting as a mercenary in Ukraine against Russia, Russian news agencies reported Saturday.
Prosecutors asked the court to take into account 72-year-old Stephen Hubbard’s age and said he has admitted guilt, according to Interfax. They asked that Hubbard serve the sentence in a maximum-security penal colony.
In Russia, participating in mercenary activities is a criminal offense punishable by imprisonment for a term of seven-15 years.
Prosecutors accuse Hubbard of signing a contract with the Ukrainian military after Russia sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, for which he allegedly was to receive at least US$1,000.
He reportedly underwent training, received a personal firearm and fought in the Ukrainian military as a mercenary until April 2022, when he was …