2 days ago
Harvard scientist released after arrest for smuggling frog embryos into US
A Russian-born scientist and Harvard University researcher, Kseniia Petrova, was released from federal custody on Thursday after being charged with smuggling frog embryos into the US. The 30-year-old expressed deep gratitude to her supporters following her release outside a federal building in Boston."Just want to thank everybody," Petrova, who was wearing a "Hakuna Matata" T-shirt, was quoted as saying by The Associated had been in custody since February, initially detained by immigration officials after returning from a vacation in France, where she visited a lab and obtained frog embryo samples for research.
She was stopped at Boston Logan International Airport and later accused by the Department of Homeland Security of lying to federal officers and planning to smuggle undeclared biological an April interview, Petrova insisted she had not intended to conceal anything and was unaware the samples required declaration.A federal judge eventually ruled that the embryos were nonliving, nonhazardous, and posed no threat. Immigration officers' actions were deemed unlawful, leading to her release from ICE custody. However, she remained under the US Marshals Service due to the smuggling of her release include travel restrictions and surrendering her passport. She must appear in court next week for a probable cause hearing. Her attorney, Greg Romanovsky, said Petrova is considering her future and has received international research very grateful to be out,' he added. 'She's weighing her options at the moment.'Academics and colleagues have vouched for Petrova's research, which aims to help develop cancer treatments.
