Chinese court upholds death penalty for Canadian prisoner Robert Schellenberg

A Chinese court on Tuesday rejected Canadian Robert Schellenberg's appeal against a death sentence for drug smuggling.

Schellenberg was detained by Chinese authorities in December 2014, charged with drug smuggling in January 2015, and sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2018.

In 2019, the Dalian Intermediate People's Court in China's Liaoning province retried Schellenberg, who had appealed his original sentence, and decided on execution.

The Higher People's Court of Liaoning Province on Tuesday found that "the facts in the original trial were clear, the evidence was reliable and sufficient, the conviction was accurate, the sentence was appropriate, and the trial procedures were legal."

It sent the case to the Chinese supreme court for review, as is required by law before any death sentences can be carried out.

Verdict expected for 2nd Canadian

A verdict for fellow Canadian Michael Spavor, who has been detained by China since late 2018 on suspicion of espionage, is expected to be announced later this week, possibly as soon as tomorrow.

Spavor was detained by Chinese authorities on Dec. 10, 2018 â€" nine days after Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Huawei Technologies â€" was arrested while changing planes in Vancouver.

Canadian officials were denied access to a Chinese court in Dandong during the trial of Michael Kovrig. (Carlos Garcia Rawlins/Reuters)

Another Canadian, Michael Kovrig, was arrested at the same time as Spavor. Kovrig is still awaiting a verdict following his trial, which ended in March.

Ottawa has repeatedly criticized the Chinese government over what it has called the "arbitrary detention" of Spavor and Kovrig and the secrecy surrounding their cases.

Schellenberg's family declined to comment Monday, but a family friend released a written statement saying they remain hopeful that diplomatic efforts between Canada and China will bring about the "best possible outcome for Bob."

The statement said the family hopes "Canada's request for clemency for Schellenberg will be honoured."

Officials from the Canadian Embassy in Beijing were denied access to Kovrig's trial earlier this year.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and U.S. President Joe Biden spoke about Spavor and Kovrig during a phone call last week, in which Biden condemned the detention and said the U.S. will support Canada's efforts to secure their release.

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