US-Russian Ballerina Sentenced to 12 Years in Russia for Treason Over Donation to Ukraine
A Russian court has sentenced Ksenia Karelina, a 33-year-old amateur ballerina with dual US-Russian citizenship, to 12 years in prison for high treason. Karelina, who had been living in Los Angeles since becoming a US citizen in 2021, was convicted for donating $51 (£39) to a charity supporting Ukraine.
Karelina was arrested in January during a family visit to Yekaterinburg, located 1,600 km east of Moscow. Prosecutors, who initially sought a 15-year sentence, claimed she had raised funds for a Ukrainian organization accused of supplying arms to the Ukrainian military.
The trial, held behind closed doors, concluded last week with Karelina pleading guilty. She will serve her sentence in a general regime penal colony.
The Ukrainian charity, Razom, expressed shock at her arrest, while her boyfriend, boxer Chris van Heerden, described the trial as “upsetting and nerve-wracking.”
This case has drawn parallels to the trial of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was held on espionage charges in the same court before being released in a prisoner swap.
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