A Los Angeles woman with dual U.S. and Russian citizenship is in Russian custody on treason charges — for the alleged crime of donating to a Ukrainian charity.

Ksenia Khavana, also known as Ksenia Karelina, a 33-year-old esthetician and amateur ballerina, was arrested in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg on Jan. 27, on a trip visiting her family. She was jailed for providing "financial assistance to a foreign state."

What You Need To Know

  • A U.S.-Russian dual citizen living in Los Angeles is in Russian custody on treason charges for allegedly donating to a Ukrainian charity

  • Ksenia Karelina, also known as Ksenia Khavana, 33, was arrested in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg on Jan. 27, on a trip visiting her family and jailed for providing "financial assistance to a foreign state"

  • Karelina allegedly donated about $51 to a charity for Ukraine in 2022, not long after Russia invaded the neighboring country

  • She joins a list of Americans jailed in the country, incluidng journalists, a former U.S. Marine and a schoolteacher

That assistance, according to a post from her employer, is for a charitable donation.

"Ksenia, a dual citizen, went to Russia to visit her 90-year-old grandmother, parents and younger sister," Ciel Spa posted on Facebook this week. "She has been accused of treason for allegedly donating $51.80 to a Ukrainian charity in the U.S."

"To know Ksenia is to love her and this heartbreaking news is so difficult to share but it must be done to spread her story and seek justice," the post added.

According to the Associated Press, Russia's Federal Security Service alleges that Khavana had been “proactively” raising funds for a Ukrainian organization since February 2022 — money that it says was “subsequently used to purchase tactical medicine, equipment, weapons and ammunition by the Ukrainian Armed Forces.”

The agency said she also took part in “public actions” in the U.S. in support of Kyiv. It did not provide further details about the allegations.U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters that the department is aware of the case and seeking consular assistance for Khavana, but have not yet been granted access — Russia does not recognize dual citizenship, viewing dual-nationals only as citizens of Russia.

Khavana joins a list of Americans jailed in Russia, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich and retired U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, both accused of espionage; businessman Gene Spector, accused of bribery and espionage; schoolteacher Marc Fogel, Thomas Stwalley and Michael Leake, all of whom are accused of drug offenses; and journalist Aslu Kurmsheva, a Prague-based reporter charged with the offense of failing to register as a "foreign agent."

Women’s basketball star Brittney Griner was returned to the U.S. in Dec. 2022, after nearly nine months of what U.S. officials deemed wrongful detention for possession of medicinal hash oil in vape cartridges. Griner was in the country to play Russian Premier League basketball, a then-normal off-season gig for WNBA players. She was sentenced to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to smuggling charges and only released in a prisoner swap for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Razom for Ukraine, the charity that Khavana is believed to have supported with a donation in early 2022, released a statement Tuesday decrying Russia’s actions. 

"Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly shown that he holds no sovereign border, foreign nationality or international treaty above his own narrow interest," Razom CEO Dora Chomaik said in a statement. "His regime attacks civil society activists who stand up for freedom and democracy. Razom calls on the U.S. Government to continue to do everything in its power to demand that President Putin release all those unjustly detained by Russian to hold Russia’s political and military leadership accountable for their unprovoked invasion of Ukraine."

If convicted of treason under article 275 of the Russian Criminal Code, Khavana faces up to 20 years in prison.