By Mark Gray
2:00pm PST, Feb 24, 2024
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Ksenia Karelina, who now lives in Los Angeles, was initially arrested on charges of "petty hooliganism" — for swearing — DailyMail.com reported. Charges were later upgraded to "high treason" after Russian authorities accused her of attending pro-Ukraine rallies in the United States. On the day Russian forces invaded Ukraine in 2022, she donated $51.80 to the New York-based pro-Ukraine charitable organization Razom.
Russia's Federal Security Service said she was "proactively collecting funds since February 2022 in the interests of a Ukrainian organization, which were subsequently used to purchase tactical medicine, equipment, weapons and ammunition for the Armed Forces of Ukraine," according to the Moscow Times.
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Razom, the Ukrainian charity that Ksenia Karelina is accused of supporting, says it has been "contributing to the establishment of a secure, prosperous, and democratic Ukraine."
Russian language outlet Mediazona said the ballerina stopped using Russian social media site VK in 2021 after she obtained American citizenship.
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Ksenia Karelina's Facebook page states that she's from Yekaterinburg, where she studied ballet. She became an American citizen in 2021 and reportedly married an American man, from whom she later split, in 2013.
According to her social media pages, she works as a spa manager in Los Angeles.
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Since 2023, 63 people have been charged with treason in Russia and 37 were found guilty. Treason charges carry penalties of up to 20 years in prison.
In regard to Ksenia Karelina's case, a White House official told DailyMail.com, "The White House and State Department is aware of reports that a dual U.S.-Russia citizen has been detained in Russia. We are working to obtain more information and secure consular access to the individual."
