Russia arrests dual-US citizen on treason charges

Russian authorities have arrested a dual U.S.-Russian citizen suspected of fundraising for the Ukrainian army in light of Moscow’s assault, as announced by the Federal Security Service on Tuesday.

The FSB stated that a 33-year-old woman, a resident of Los Angeles, was detained in Yekaterinburg on charges of "treason" for her involvement in fundraising activities for Kyiv and participation in pro-Ukraine public rallies.

Though the FSB did not disclose her identity, independent Russian-language media outlet Mediazona identified her as Ksenia Karelina.

According to the Russian courts' database, a Yekaterinburg judge rejected an appeal against Karelina's pretrial detention on February 20. She faces accusations of high treason.

The Pervy Otdel group, specializing in espionage and treason cases, revealed that Karelina was detained by police on January 27. It was disclosed that she was arrested by the FSB for transferring $51.80 from an American bank to the Ukrainian charity 'Razom'.

The FSB alleges that the funds contributed by Karelina "were used by the Armed Forces of Ukraine to purchase tactical medical supplies, equipment, attack tools, and ammunition."

However, at the time of Karelina’s donation in February 2022, ‘Razom’ was openly fundraising for medical supplies, according to its website announcement.

Court documents reveal that Karelina was arrested for swearing in public near a movie theater. This tactic is commonly employed by the FSB to initially detain individuals for minor violations in order to seize their electronic devices.

Since March 2023, the FSB has accused Russians who donate to Ukrainian charities of financing the armed forces of Ukraine, thereby committing treason. According to databases of Russian courts, since the beginning of 2023, there have been no fewer than 70 cases of treason in the country.

Last year, Russian security services arrested Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal reporter, accusing him of spying for the U.S. — charges he and his employers have strongly denied. Gershkovich remains in Russian detention, with President Vladimir Putin hinting he could be interested in using him in a prisoner swap with the U.S.

Another Russian-American citizen, Alsu Kurmasheva, a Prague-based editor with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), was arrested last October.

American basketballer Brittney Griner spent months in detention in Russia before returning to the United States after a high-profile prisoner exchange in December 2022.

Shocked by the news of her arrest, her ex-husband expressed his dismay. “I have no words to describe what I’m feeling,” said Russian-born Evgeny Khavana, also a U.S. citizen. He stated that she had returned to Russia earlier in January planning to spend a few weeks there.

“She’s down to earth, and not political. She is like an artist and was a ballet dancer for a while. She had a bunch of Ukrainian friends and when this whole war started, they posted pictures and videos on social networks. It is impossible to support a country that’s killing your friends and it is hard not to be pro-Ukrainian She was against war,” he told POLITICO.

He added: “She’s very soft, peaceful and not a person drawn to conflict. I don’t think I know anyone who would say something bad about her and would not want to be friends with her; she’s an interesting, beautiful girl, and at the same time very empathic. It is just two completely different worlds — Ksenia and jails, especially Russian jails.”

Her ex-mother-in-law, Eleonora Srebroski, told POLITICO that she was not surprised by the arrest “because I’m from Russia and I know the regime, and I know that Ksenia supported Ukraine. And not only that, but she also actually had issues with some in her family in Russia who didn’t support her views.”

She added: “It’s heartbreaking. People need to take off the dark glasses and realize what’s going on in Russia.”