A Los Angeles resident and dual national has been detained by Russian authorities on suspicion of treason, accused of raising funds to support Ukraine in its defense against Russia's invasion.
The 33-year-old woman with dual Russian-American citizenship was detained for her involvement in "providing financial assistance to a foreign state in activities directed against the security of our country," the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg said early Tuesday.
In a statement posted Tuesday about the detention, the woman was not identified. Loved ones in Southern California identified her as 33-year-old Ksenia Karelina. A senior U.S. official confirmed her identity to NBC News, describing Karelina as a Russian-American ballerina.
That money was spent on medicine, equipment, weapons and ammunition, the statement said. No other details nor a description of any evidence were released.
"Since February 2022, she has proactively collected funds in the interests of one of the Ukrainian organizations," the statement said.
She also is accused by Russian authorities of "public actions in support" of Kyiv while in the United States.
Karelina is accused of treason under article 275 of the Russian Criminal Code, which is punishable by 12 to 20 years in prison and confiscation of property, NBC News reported. She was detained under a pre-trial custody order.
Video released by FSB showed a person in a coat and stocking hat, partially covering her face, being handcuffed and led to a vehicle by a person wearing a camouflage jacket.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
Karelina works as an esthetician at Ciel Spa in the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills. In a social media post, co-workers said Karelina went to Russia to visit her 90-year-old grandmother, parents and younger sister.
A White House official told NBC News, "The White House and State Department are working to obtain more information and secure consular access to the individual."
There was no immediate comment from the U.S. Embassy in Moscow or the State Department.
Russia's invasion of Ukraine began two years ago this week.
