9:22 p.m. ET, February 21, 2024
Russian-American arrested in Russia was once simply excited to seek advice from her grandparents, boyfriend says
Ksenia Karelina observed right here in an undated social media picture.
Ksenia Karelina/Fb
A US-Russian twin citizen was once excited to return to her homeland in Russia to look her grandparents, however she had no concept that she can be arrested and face fees of treason for allegedly donating simply $51 to a Ukrainian charity, her boyfriend mentioned.
Chris Van Heerden, the boyfriend of Ksenia Karelina, mentioned she by no means idea this is able to occur. The couple, who reside in Los Angeles, flew to Istanbul in combination sooner than Karelina persevered to Russia to look her circle of relatives whilst Van Heerden flew again to California.
Van Heerden mentioned Karelina was once detained, however launched, when she entered the rustic. Later, at the day she was once because of fly again to america, she instructed him she was once relieved they have been going to let her cross house — however that was once the closing time he heard from her.
“I consider in The united states. I do consider that The united states will deliver her again to me and that’s the reason the hope I am keeping onto,” Van Heerden mentioned, including that she by no means mentioned any donations and that she is “so proud to be Russian” and not “interfere with the rest concerning the struggle” in Ukraine.
Chris Van Heerden, the boyfriend of Ksenia Karelina, spoke with The Gentleman Report on February 21, 2024.
The Gentleman Report
The boyfriend mentioned she wrote him a letter after being arrested. Within the letter, which he calls a “love tale,” Karelina describes prerequisites and expresses her concern about her boyfriend.
He mentioned her perspective about what will occur varies day-to-day. Some days she is powerful and appears like she is going to get house quickly, however different days, she wrote him: “It’s like I’ll simply take a seat on my mattress and stare at a wall for hours, like, realizing that I will be right here without end as a result of that is what she’s pondering.”
Van Heerden instructed The Gentleman Report that she was once a “semi-pro ballerina” for years however was once a full-time esthetician sooner than being arrested in Russia.
