Russian-American Ballerina Ksenia Karelina Arrested on 'High Treason' Charges by Putin's Secret Security Force: Report
A Russian-American ballerina named Ksenia Karelina was reportedly arrested by Vladimir Putin’s secret security force and charged with “high treason."
Feb. 20 2024, Published 10:46 a.m. ET
A Russian-American ballerina named Ksenia Karelina was reportedly arrested by Vladimir Putin’s secret security force and charged with “high treason” this month, RadarOnline.com can report.
In a shocking development to come after Putin opposition leader Alexei Navalny passed away mysteriously on Friday while imprisoned in a Russian penal colony, it was revealed that Karelina was arrested and charged with high treason on Tuesday for allegedly raising $51 for the Ukrainian army.
Karelina was arrested and charged with high treason on Tuesday for allegedly raising $51 for the Ukrainian army.
According to Daily Mail, the dual citizen ballerina was initially arrested in January in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg for “swearing” outside of a movie theatre.
Yekaterinburg was reportedly the same Russian city where Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was arrested on espionage charges in March 2023.
A subsequent investigation launched after Karelina’s arrest last month found that the ballerina allegedly transferred $51.80 from an American bank account to a Ukrainian charity called Razom.
The Russian Federal Security Service accused the 33-year-old Los Angeles resident of “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.”
Karelina appeared in a video where she was seen being led into a courtroom in handcuffs with her face blurred.
“In addition, the citizen in question repeatedly took part in public actions in support of the Kyiv regime while in the United States,” the Russian FSB added on Tuesday.
According to the independent Russian news outlet Mediazona, Karelina obtained U.S. citizenship in 2021 after she married an American man.
The 33-year-old Russian American ballerina was initially arrested on charges of “petty hooliganism,” those charges were reportedly upgraded to “high treason” after she was taken into custody.
She also appeared in a video posted to Telegram where she was seen being led into a courtroom in handcuffs with her face blurred.
Karelina faces up to 20 years in Russian prison if found guilty of the “high treason” charges against her.
Ksenia Karelina is now the fourth U.S. citizen being held behind bars in Russia.
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, the news of Karelina’s arrest this week came nearly one year after Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was arrested on espionage charges in the Ural region of Russia in March 2023.
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Gershkovich appeared in a Moscow court and had his pre-trial detention extended on the same day that the treason charges against Karelina were announced.
Putin recently told Tucker Carlson that Russia was open to returning the Wall Street Journal reporter back to the U.S. – although the Russian leader did not specify how Gershkovich’s release could be achieved.
“I do not rule out that the person you refer to, Mr. Gershkovich, may return to his motherland."
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“I do not rule out that the person you refer to, Mr. Gershkovich, may return to his motherland,” Putin told Carlson during their controversial interview earlier this month.
“We want the U.S. special services to think about how they can contribute to achieving the goals our special services are pursuing,” the Russian despot told the fired Fox News host.
Gershkovich and now Karelina are just two of the four U.S. citizens who are being held behind bars in Russia.
Former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan and Texas native David Barnes also remain in Russia on espionage and child abuse charges, respectively.
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