Calgarian Michael Spavor found guilty, sentenced to 11 years on espionage charges

CALGARY -

A Chinese court sentenced Calgarian Michael Spavor to 11 years in prison late Tuesday night.

The news was announced shortly before 9 p.m. Calgary time.

At a press conference, Dominic Barton, Canada's ambassador to China, added that the sentence was "11 years with deportation", although it remained unclear what was meant by that.

"That deportation phrase is noted," Barton said.

He said he spoke to Spavor, who had three messages for friends and family in Canada.

"Thank you for all your support," Barton said. "I am in good spirits and I want to get home."

Although there did not appear to be any evidence to support the charges, the outcome was almost certain, according to some.

"We know in China that for high profile cases, it's the Communist Party that dictates the rulings," said Guy Saint-Jacques, a former Canadian diplomat.

"They are trumped-up charges for which there's absolutely, absolutely no basis in law," said Justice Minister David Lametti.

Spavor has been in custody since December 2018 in apparent retaliation for Canada's arrest of senior Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou on an extradition warrant to the United States.

He has 10 days in which to appeal the sentence.

GREW UP IN CALGARY

Spavor grew up in Calgary and graduated from the University of Calgary with a degree in international relations.

He went to teach overseas in Korea where he fell in love with the people and culture, eventually becoming fluent.

He first visited North Korea in 2001, returning several times, including to live for six months. He is one of the few westerners to have met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Despite his remarkable life overseas, his friends say he always kept in touch and was interested in their lives at home.

"In the mid-90s we just started hanging out together and we've stayed friends ever since," recalls friend Matt Burgener.

Burgener says he received a text days before Spavor was to return home to Calgary, making plans to see music together. That meeting never happened.

"He's just a regular guy who had an incredible skill with languages and it took him into some unique corners," he said.

SPAVOR FAMILY RESPONDS

The Spavor family issued the following statement after learning of the verdict and sentence.

We have been informed that the court in Dandong, China has come to a verdict and sentence in the case against Michael.

While we disagree with the charges, we realize that this is the next step in the process to bring Michael home and we will continue to support him through this challenging time.

Michael’s life passion has been to bring different cultures together through tourism and events shared between the Korean peninsula and other countries including China and Canada. This situation has not dampened, but strengthened his passion.

Once again we thank the Government of Canada for its tireless advocacy for the release of Michael, and are endlessly grateful for the support, thoughts and prayers of our friends and allies around the world.

KOVRIG AWAITS VERDICT

Former diplomat Micheal Kovrig awaits his verdict on similar charges to Spavor. Kovrig's trial was held in March.

A third Canadian, Robert Schellenberg, had his death sentence affirmed by China earlier this week for drug trafficking. He had earlier been sentenced to 15 years in prison.

"The Chinese end game, it's free Meng Wanzhou, full stop, and they will bring all pressure they can," says former Canadian diplomat Colin Robertson.

Meng's extradition hearing could be decided this week. The United States issued a warrant for her arrest on fraud charges related to the sale of equipment to Iran despite sanctions prohibiting the transaction.