05 March 2024 , 17:27
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The cruel conditions that a US citizen has been subjected to while in detention in a Russian prison have emerged, including a lack of hot water, limited access to hygiene facilities and freezing temperatures.
Ksenia Khavana, also known as Ksenia Karelina, has been detained by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) on charges of treason after she reportedly made a donation of $51 to a charity supporting Ukraine. Karelina, 33, holds both US and Russian citizenship due to her marriage to an American and had returned to Russia to visit her family.
Her arrest took place in the city of Yekaterinburg, situated in the Ural Mountains, approximately 1,100 miles east of Moscow. The once semi-pro ballerina, who now works as an aesthetician at a hotel spa in Beverly Hills, California, is currently being held in the Yekaterinburg detention centre.
READ MORE: Ballerina arrested in Russia for 'donating $51 to Ukraine' tells of squalid jail conditions
Karelina is being held at the Russian detention center in Yekaterinburg (Vyacheslav Bukharov/Wikimedia Commons)But in a heartbreaking letter to her boyfriend, Chris Van Heerden, Karelina described the cruel conditions she is being held in at the prison. She disclosed that she is allowed to shower only once a week and lacks access to hot water in her cell.
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Additionally, Karelina said that the lights never go off, so she is having trouble sleeping. She claimed she's also awoken every day at 6am and has to be in bed by 10pm. Despite being permitted to go to the jail's roof for fresh air, Karelina opted not to, claiming guards left inmates in freezing conditions for hours by locking the door.
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Karelina's boyfriend, Chris Van Heerden, revealed what she told him in her letter (CNN)Despite these hardships, Karelina has been finding solace in the small window of her cell, seeing the same sun as her boyfriend. Van Heerden told Fox News: "It’s a day-by-day thing. One day she wakes up very hopeful and very positive, and then other days there is no hope. [...] I can’t look at the sun now, because when I look at the sun I just think of her."
She was seen with her eyes covered as she was taken into custody (Ria Novosti/e2w)The FSB claims Karelina had been actively raising funds for a Ukrainian organisation since February 2022. They allege the funds were used to procure military equipment for the Ukrainian Armed Forces and that she participated in public demonstrations in the US supporting Kyiv.
According to Isabella Koretz, Karelina's employer at Ciel Spa in SLS Hotel, Karelina moved to the US to study at the University of Maryland before settling in Los Angeles. Being reportedly divorced and without immediate family in the US, Karelina maintained a close relationship with Koretz, who described her as family.
Chris Van Hardeen, right, said he has received a letter from his girlfriend, Ksenia Karelina (Facebook)Koretz countered Russia's allegations against Karelina, asserting that she was collecting funds for humanitarian purposes, including donations to a US-based nonprofit aiding Ukraine.
"We're talking about diapers and formula, that's what she was collecting money for. We're not talking about money for weapons," Koretz told Sky News. In response to Karelina's arrest, the nonprofit's CEO expressed dismay at the situation and urged the US government to intervene.
Putin’s FSB has detained Ksenia Karelina (K Karelina/e2w)The White House and the State Department have acknowledged the reports of Karelina's arrest and are seeking further information. Karelina remains detained pending further investigation. If convicted of treason, she could face up to 20 years in prison.
Her arrest came on the same day a court in Moscow decided to keep Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in custody on espionage charges, which he denies.