Ksenia Karelina, a working professional in the spa industry with dual Russian-American citizenship, was handed a 12-year prison sentence by a Russian judiciary on Thursday. She was convicted of treason charges for contributing funds to a Ukraine-supporting charity. Karelina, a permanent resident of Los Angeles, admitted her guilt in a covert trial proceeding within the city of Yekaterinburg in the Urals. Coincidentally, the court that delivered her verdict was the same that had convicted Evan Gershkovich, a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, of spying, earlier in July.
On February 24th, 2022 – the inaugural day of the Russian assault on Ukraine – officials found proof that Karelina had made monetary transactions benefitting a Ukrainian entity. These funds were later put towards the acquisition of tactical medical supplies, equipment, weaponry and ammunition to aid the Ukrainian armed forces, the court reported.
Contrarily, Karelina’s allies argue that she merely donated $51.80 to Razom for Ukraine – a charity organization stationed in New York that offers humanitarian relief to the elderly and children in Ukraine. This charity vehemently denies its involvement in providing military assistance to Kyiv.
The 33-year-old Russian-born Karelina was not part of last week’s prisoner exchange between Russia and the West, which saw the release of Mr. Gershkovich. However, her legal counsel, Mikhail Mushailov hinted that she may have hopes of being included in any such future exchange arrangements.
In 2012, Karelina moved from Russia to the United States and obtained her American citizenship in 2021. She had travelled to Russia early this year to see her family in Yekaterinburg when she was apprehended by the FSB security forces. (Thomson Reuters 2024 ©)