MOSCOW, October 10. /TASS/. The Moscow City Court ruled on Tuesday to keep in pre-trial detention center US citizen Evan Gershkovich, a correspondent of The Wall Street Journal charged with espionage.

"The court considered an appeal filed by Gershkovich's defense against the decision to extend his detention and ruled to leave the decision passed by the first court instance unchanged and to reject a motion filed by the defendant's lawyers," the court’s statement reads.

The hearing was held behind closed doors, as the case contains confidential materials. Earlier, the journalist's arrest was extended until November 30.

According to the FSB Public Relations Center, Gershkovich, "acting at the behest of the American side, collected information constituting a state secret about the activities of an enterprise within Russia’s military-industrial complex."

Gershkovich was detained in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg in late March. The journalist was charged with espionage under Article 276 of the Russian Criminal Code. He pleads not guilty.