BEIJING – The trial of a Chinese researcher for The New York Times who is accused of fraud and leaking state secrets ended Friday after one day, his lawyer said.
A lawyer for Zhao Yan said the closed trial concluded after an eight-hour session at the Beijing No. 2 Intermediate People's Court. The lawyer, Mo Shaoping, said it was not immediately clear when there would be a verdict.
"The court is going to examine the case and then make a verdict," Mo said.
Zhao was detained in 2004 after the newspaper reported on Chinese leader Jiang Zemin's plans to relinquish his post as head of the military.
The government has not released details about the case.
On Thursday, the New York-based press rights group, the Committee to Protect Journalists, called for Zhao's release.
"While Zhao's long imprisonment without trial has forced us to brace for further injustice, we can only hope that the court will do the right thing," said Ann Cooper, the committee's executive director. "Find Zhao innocent and release him immediately."
If found guilty of leaking state secrets, Zhao could face up to 10 years in jail.
Zhao's case was dismissed in March ahead of a visit by Chinese President Hu Jintao to Washington, an apparent effort to help smooth over U.S.-Chinese relations.
But Zhao was never released from police custody and prosecutors said just days after the initial case was dropped that they were launching a new investigation into his case.
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