China court sentences Japanese man to 3.5-yrs in jail for spying

A Chinese court on Wednesday sentenced a Japanese man to three years and six months in prison for spying, the Japanese Embassy in Beijing said, with the guilty verdict likely to impact bilateral ties.The Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court convicted the Astellas Pharma Inc. employee of engaging in espionage activities, Japanese Ambassador Kenji Kanasugi told reporters, calling the guilty verdict "extremely regrettable.""We will continue to call for his early release and support him," Kanasugi said. The Japanese government has repeatedly urged China to free the man in his 60s at variou…READ FULL ARTICLE