Australian judge rules that a case against alleged Russian spies must be finalized by December

BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — An Australian judge has given prosecutors until December to finalize their case alleging that an army private and her husband are Russian spies. Russian-born couple Kira and Igor Korolev in July became the first suspected foreign operatives to be charged under Australia’s modernized espionage laws. Prosecutor Ellie McDonald told Magistrate Peter Saggers on Friday that investigators need more time to gather evidence from the Brisbane-based couple’s electronic devices. Saggers ordered a full brief of evidence be provided to defense lawyers by Dec. 13. Kira Korolev is a 40-year-old information systems technician and has been suspended from the army since her arrest. Her 62-year-old husband is a self-employed laborer. Neither appeared in court on Friday.