Russian Harvard scientist Kseniia Petrova 'knowingly' smuggled illicit items to US: feds

Federal authorities said Harvard's Kseniia Petrova "knowingly broke the law" amid their ongoing propulsion to deport the Russian scientist.

Petrova, a bioinformatician astatine the Kirschner Lab astatine Harvard Medical School, was detained astatine Boston Logan International Airport connected Feb. 16 arsenic she returned from a travel to Paris.

Her attorney, Gregory Romanovsky, told Fox News that Petrova was bringing backmost frog embryos astatine the petition of a prof astatine a French laboratory with which the Ivy League assemblage was collaborating. According to Romanovsky, the illustration was picked up successful Paris and was expected to beryllium brought to Harvard and that Petrova was unaware she needed to assertion them astatine customs.

"The idiosyncratic was lawfully detained aft lying to national officers astir carrying substances into the country," the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wrote successful a station connected X connected Tuesday. "A consequent K9 inspection uncovered undeclared petri dishes, containers of chartless substances, and escaped vials of embryonic frog cells, each without due permits."

Kseniia Petrova, a Russian idiosyncratic moving astatine Harvard Medical School, was detained astatine Boston Logan International Airport connected Feb. 16 arsenic she was returning from a travel to Paris. (Attorney Gregory Romanovsky)

The feds said messages recovered connected the 30-year-old's telephone revealed she planned to smuggle the materials done customs without declaring them. 

"She knowingly broke the instrumentality and took deliberate steps to evade it," DHS alleged. 

Petrova's lawyer has pushed backmost connected that narrative, saying that failing to state an entity astatine customs is not capable grounds to cancel her visa. Rather, officials should person imposed a good and seized the object, helium said.

"CBP was authorized to prehend the point and contented a fine," helium said. "Instead, they chose to cancel Ms. Petrova’s visa and detain her."

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Kseniia Petrova, a bioinformatician astatine the Kirschner Lab astatine Harvard Medical School, was bringing backmost frog embryos astatine the petition of a prof astatine a French laboratory with which Harvard was collaborating, her lawyer told Fox News. (Gregory Romanovsky)

Romanovsky said that caused credible fear, and they were past seeking asylum for Petrova, who had antecedently been detained successful Russia for anti-war protests soon aft the onslaught connected Ukraine. 

"She faces the menace of contiguous apprehension owed to her anterior governmental activism and outspoken absorption to Russia's penetration of Ukraine," helium said. 

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Petrova is being held astatine the Richwood Detention Facility successful Louisiana and has an migration tribunal proceeding scheduled for May 7 successful Jena, Louisiana, related to her asylum case.

Kseniia Petrova is presently being held astatine the Richwood Detention Facility successful Louisiana. (Facebook)

Her lawyer was besides challenging CBP's actions astatine the airport: the visa cancellation. A national tribunal proceeding was scheduled successful that lawsuit for June 9 successful the District of Vermont, but the program was to inquire them to expedite the hearing.

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"ICE is required to detain individuals ... lone if they are a formation hazard oregon a information to the community. Ms. Petrova is neither," Romanovsky said. "Her continued detention serves nary intent and wastes constricted authorities resources."