A Myanmar military court has sentenced US journalist Danny Fenster to 11 years in prison, media reports said on Friday.
37-years-old Fenster has been detained in Myanmar for more than five months and denied bail, CNN reported. Fenster, who hails from Michigan is being held in Insein Prison in Yangon city, since his May 24 arrest.
The American broadcaster said charges on Fenster include visa breaches, unlawful association with an illegal group and incitement.
He was also given a fine in the local currency equivalent to USD 50. The American journalist is one of about 100 scribes detained since the coup. Around 30 remain behind bars, the CNN report said.
“There is absolutely no basis to convict Danny of these charges. His legal team clearly demonstrated to the court that he had resigned from Myanmar Now and was working for Frontier from the middle of last year,” said Thomas Kean, editor-in-chief of Frontier Myanmar, one of the country’s top independent news outlets.
“Everyone at Frontier is disappointed and frustrated at this decision. We just want to see Danny released as soon as possible so he can go home to his family.”
According to his lawyer, Fenster was hit with two new criminal charges under the country’s sedition and terrorism laws, which carry a maximum sentence of life in prison.
