A ballet dancer from Los Angeles is being detained in Russia on treason charges. Here’s what to know.

What we know about the Russian-American ballerina arrested in Russia 02:51 Russia’s main domestic intelligence agency has arrested a woman with dual U.S. and Russian citizenship on charges of treason, accusing her of collecting money for the Ukrainian military . Authorities did not name the woman, but her longtime employer in California identified her as Ksenia Khavana, whose maiden name is Ksenia Karelina . The Federal Security Service said in a statement early Tuesday that the Los Angeles resident was arrested in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg, about 1,100 miles east of Moscow. She had returned to Russia to visit family. In this undated photo provided by Ksenia Leonteva, Los Angeles-based dancer and esthetician Ksenia Khavana is pictured in her medical scrubs. / AP Here is what is known about Khavana and Russia’s case against her.

Who is Ksenia Khavana?

Khavana, 33, is a citizen of the U.S. and Russia. The independent Russian news outlet Mediazona identified her as Ksenia Karelina, her maiden name, and said that she had received U.S. citizenship after marrying an American.

Isabella Koretz, owner of Ciel Spa at the SLS Beverly Hills where Khavana has worked for eight years, told The Associated Press that Khavana, a ballet dancer, came to the U.S. to study at the University of Maryland in Baltimore before relocating to Los Angeles. She said Khavana is divorced and does not have any relatives in the U.S. Koretz said she has grown close to Khavana over the years and treats her like “she’s family.” An undated photo from her Facebook page shows U.S.-Russian national Knesia Karelina, who also goes by Ksenia Khavana. Facebook/Knesia Karelina According to Koretz, Khavana tried to see her family in Russia at least once a year, usually around Christmas and New Year’s. This year, Koretz said, Khavana flew into Russia from Istanbul in early January for a two-week trip to spend time with her 90-year-old grandmother, parents and younger sister. Koretz grew concerned when Khavana stopped returning her messages and phone calls after entering Russia. She said panic set in when Khavana ultimately did not return from her trip in mid-January as planned.

What is she accused of?

CBS News correspondent Imtiaz Tyab reported that Khavana was arrested after making a donation of only about $51 to a Ukrainian charity. The Russian authorities also said she had attended pro-Ukraine rallies in the U.S. 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. Koretz said Khavana actually was collecting funds for humanitarian aid and had made a donation to Razom for Ukraine, a U.S.-based nonprofit that says it provides medical kits and disaster relief to those affected by Russia’s invasion of the country. “We’re talking about diapers and formula, that’s what she was collecting money for,” Koretz said. “We’re not talking about money for weapons.” In its own statement Tuesday, the nonprofit’s CEO said she was “appalled” by media reports of the arrest but did not name Khavana or confirm whether the woman had previously donated to the charity.

The organization said in an email to The Associated Press that it does not disclose the identities of its donors to protect their privacy. “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 Russia and to hold Russia’s political and military leadership accountable for their unprovoked invasion of Ukraine,” Dora Chomiak said in her statement.

Where is she now?

White House national security spokesman John Kirby said that the White House and the State Department were aware of reports of the arrest and added that “we are trying to get more information and to secure some consular access to that individual.” The Federal Security Service says that she has been ordered detained as a “preventative measure” while it continues its investigation. Koretz said that Khavana, meanwhile, has been communicating with her colleagues at the spa through letters and has asked them to help her sell her belongings in Los Angeles, including her car. “She doesn’t want to leave anybody with her debts,” Koretz said. If convicted of treason under article 275 of the Russian Criminal Code, Khavana faces up to 20 years in prison.

Khavana’s former mother-in-law Eleonora Srebroski tells CBS News that, in the wake of Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny’s death in prison , she’s afraid of what might happen to her. “I’m very, very concerned about her, about her physical wellbeing,” Srebroski told CBS News on Tuesday. “We know that Navalny was just killed a few days ago. We know it wasn’t just a death. It was the murder.” “I am in shock,” she told CBS News, adding that there was “no justice in Russia whatsoever.” A screengrab from video aired on Feb. 20, 2024 by Russia’s state-run broadcaster RU24 shows a woman identified by the FSB security service as a dual U.S.-Russian national from Los Angeles being led into a courtroom in Yekaterinburg after her arrest on suspicion of treason. Reuters/RU24 News on Tuesday of Khavana’s arrest came the same day a court in the Russian capital ruled to keep Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich in custody pending his trial on espionage charges that he denies.

Russia detains Los Angeles ballerina on suspicion of treason

A senior U.S. official confirmed to NBC News that the American is Ksenia Karelina. Russian officials said the dual citizen is accused of raising funds to back Ukraine’s war effort.

Russian authorities have detained a woman who is a Los Angeles resident and dual national on suspicion of treason for raising funds to support Ukraine in its defense against the Kremlin’s invasion.

A senior U.S. official confirmed to NBC News that the detained American is Ksenia Karelina, a Russian American ballerina. Karelina, 33, became a U.S. citizen in 2021, a U.S. official said.

The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg said early Tuesday that the woman, who it did not name, has dual Russian American citizenship.

“She’s such a gentle flower and I’m just very, very concerned about her physical being, about her mental being, I just want her back,” Karelina’s former mother-in-law, Eleonora Srebroski, told NBC News on Tuesday night.

The White House said it was working to secure consular access.

“She is not safe there and if we do not help her, she will spend the rest of her life in jail,” Srebroski said.

Since 2022, the FSB alleges the woman has been “involved in providing financial assistance to a foreign state in activities directed against the security of our country.”

The statement added that the suspect collected money that was spent on medicine, equipment, weapons and ammunition in the Ukrainian war effort. No other details nor a description of any evidence were released.

“In addition, in the United States, this citizen repeatedly took part in public actions in support of the Kiev regime,” it said.

Ballerina Ksenia Karelina. Nick Starichenko / Shutterstock

Karelina entered Russia on Jan. 2, and the U.S. learned on Feb. 8 that she had been arrested, a U.S. official said.

She is accused of treason under article 275 of the Russian Criminal Code, which is punishable by 12 to 20 years in prison, as well as confiscation of property.

Karelina works as an esthetician at Ciel Spa in the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills, and co-workers said she was in Russia to visit her 90-year-old grandmother, parents and younger sister.

Her alleged crime was donating $51.80 to a Ukrainian charity in the United States, Karelina’s co-workers said. Authorities have not confirmed that.

“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,” they said in a statement posted on Facebook.

As with previous arrests of foreign- and dual-nationals, the woman is detained under a pre-trial custody order.

National Security Council spokesman John Kirby told reporters that he couldn’t comment much on the case, but that the White House and State Department are gathering more information. He said that it is dangerous for U.S. citizens or dual citizens to be in Russia right now.

“If you’re a U.S. citizen, including a dual national, residing in or traveling in Russia, you ought to leave right now if you can,” Kirby said. “Just depart immediately.”

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said at a briefing Tuesday that the U.S. is seeking consular assistance, but that has not yet been granted.

“Russia does not recognize dual citizenship, considers them to be Russian citizens first and foremost,” Miller said. “And so oftentimes we have a difficult time getting consular assistance, but we will pursue it in all matters where a U.S. citizen is detained.”

The nonprofit Razom for Ukraine, in a statement that responded to reports that a dual-national was charged in connection with a donation, said it was “appalled.”

“Our activities, which are in keeping with our charitable purpose and our legal obligations as an American charitable organization, are focused on humanitarian aid, disaster relief, education and advocacy,” Razom for Ukraine CEO Dora Chomiak said.

NBC News has not confirmed details of the alleged “financial assistance” on which Russia claimed the charge was based.

A spokesperson for Razom said it does not share information about who donates or subscribes.

“We are very concerned about any American citizen taken hostage by Russia,” the company said.

In January, U.S. national Robert Romanov Woodland was arrested and detained on drug trafficking charges.

Alsu Kurmasheva, a dual Russian American reporter, was detained late last year and charged with failure to register as a foreign agent.

And Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has been held for nearly a year on espionage charges that he denies.

It was confirmed early Tuesday that Gershkovich will remain in jail until at least March 30 after Moscow City Court rejected his latest appeal, according to state media outlet RIA.

The U.S. says Gershkovich is one of a number of its citizens wrongfully detained in the country, including former Marine Paul Whelan.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will mark its second anniversary Saturday, with President Joe Biden’s administration considering whether to supply Kyiv with long-range ATACMS missiles while a new aid package is held up in Congress.

Karelina’s former mother-in-law, Srebroski, said she hopes attention on the case will help bring Karelina home.

“We live here in a country of justice, and we do have some power and influence and we can do something to help her out, to create some noise, to bring attention to this situation,” Srebroski said.

CORRECTION (Feb. 21, 2024, 5:45 p.m. ET): A previous version of this article misstated the amount Karelina donated to a Ukrainian charity in the United States. It was $51.80, not $58.10.

Patrick Smith is a London-based editor and reporter for NBC News Digital.

Peter Alexander is chief White House correspondent for NBC News.