(Update 2) Astellas Employee Gets Over 3 Yrs for Spying in China

   Beijing, July 16 (Jiji Press)--A Beijing district court on Wednesday sentenced a Japanese employee of Astellas Pharma Inc. to three years and six months in prison for espionage.
   The employee, who is in his 60s, was detained by Chinese authorities in March 2023, when he was about to leave China after completing his assignment. He was indicted in August 2024, and the first hearing of his trial took place in November that year.
   Wednesday's sentencing session was not open to the press, but Japanese Ambassador to China Kenji Kanasugi and other Japanese Embassy officials were allowed to observe.
   "It's extremely regrettable that a guilty ruling was issued," Kanasugi told reporters after the session. "We'll continue to call strongly for his early release while supporting him as much as we can."
   According to the ambassador, the session started at 10:23 a.m. Japan time and ended 15 minutes later. The Japanese employee made no statement and listened calmly to the Japanese translation of the ruling.

(2025/07/16-21:40)

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