U.S. student on Russia drugs charge

Tobin faces four year sentence

VORONEZH, Russia -- A Russian prosecutor has asked for a U.S. student to be jailed for four years for possessing drugs and obtaining drugs with the intent of distribution.

Prosecutor Marina Galagan said charges of being part of an organised drug-dealing group and organising a drug den should be dropped against John Tobin, according to the Associated Press.

The 24-year-old Fulbright scholar, from Ridgefield, Connecticut, was arrested on January 26 outside a Voronezh nightclub and allegedly found in possession of a matchbox containing marijuana.

The case gained prominence the following month when the Federal Security Service alleged that Tobin had connections with U.S. intelligence, transforming an ordinary drug arrest into one with an aura of espionage.

The trial was adjourned until Friday, when Tobin will be given a chance to address the court for the last time before the verdict is read.

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