Latest news with #frogembryos
Fox News
26-06-2025
- Fox News
Ivy League scientist from US adversary hit with new charges for allegedly smuggling bio materials
The Harvard University scientist accused of smuggling frog embryos into the United States was slapped with additional federal charges Wednesday as she faces the possibility of decades in prison for allegedly failing to disclose the biological materials. Russian-born scientist Kseniia Petrova, 30, was indicted by a Boston federal grand jury on one count of concealment of a material fact, one count of smuggling goods into the U.S. and one count of false statement. Petrova, a scientist studying cancer research at Harvard, was initially charged with smuggling last month and will remain on pretrial release despite the new charges. The researcher was arrested after she was stopped by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at Boston Logan International Airport while returning from a vacation to France in February. Petrova told officers she had picked up a package of superfine sections of frog embryos while on her trip with the intention of using the samples for research. Petrova was subsequently informed her visa was being canceled, and she was taken into custody by immigration officials in Vermont following her arrest. Harvard University and an attorney representing Petrova did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. In an April interview with The Associated Press, Petrova insisted she was unaware of her responsibility to declare the items, claiming she did not intend to sneak anything into the country. However, federal prosecutors allege text messages from Petrova's phone reveal a colleague informed the scientist she was required to declare the biological materials prior to traveling through TSA, according to the Department of Justice. "If you bring samples or antibody back, make sure you get the permission etc," the friend reportedly texted Petrova before her trip. "Like that link I sent to [the group chat] about frog embryos because TSA went through my bags at customs in Boston." Following her arrest in Vermont, Petrova filed a petition seeking her release and was later sent to an ICE detention facility in Louisiana. A judge later ruled the actions of the immigration officers were unlawful, with a federal grand jury initially charging Petrova with one count of smuggling. If convicted, Petrova faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for the smuggling charge, and up to five years in prison and an additional $250,000 on charges of concealment of material fact and false statements.
Reuters
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Reuters
Harvard scientist accused of smuggling frog embryos indicted on new charges
BOSTON, June 25 (Reuters) - A Russian-born scientist at Harvard University accused of smuggling frog embryos into the United States was indicted on Wednesday on additional charges nearly two weeks after her lawyers secured her release from U.S. custody. Federal prosecutors in Boston said a grand jury returned an indictment, opens new tab charging Kseniia Petrova, 30, with one count of concealment of a material fact, one count of false statement and one count of smuggling goods into the United States. Prosecutors had charged her in May only with smuggling. The two new charges add to her criminal exposure and were filed after her lawyers last week urged a magistrate judge to dismiss the initial criminal complaint. Petrova's lawyers did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Prosecutors secured the indictment after Petrova was granted bail on June 12. She had been detained for months after U.S. immigration authorities took her into custody on February 16 at the airport in Boston upon her return from a trip to France. Her supporters said she was detained as part of the practice by President Donald Trump's administration of targeting international students and academics for visa revocations and detention as part of his hardline immigration agenda. Prosecutors said U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents stopped Petrova, who works at Harvard Medical School, after her checked duffle bag was flagged for inspection, revealing the frog embryos. Petrova has said her boss asked her to bring back frog embryo samples for experiments. But prosecutors said the embryos constituted biological material that should have been declared to customs officials at the port of first arrival. Prosecutors said that when she was approached by law enforcement, Petrova initially denied carrying any biological material in her baggage, and later claimed to be unsure she was required to declare the embryos when entering the United States. But prosecutors said one of Petrova's colleagues had texted saying that she needed to make sure she got permission to bring samples back. Petrova's visa was then canceled and immigration officials took her into custody with the intent of deporting her back to Russia, a prospect Petrova has said she feared after protesting Russia's war in Ukraine.
Fox News
13-06-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Ivy League bio smuggling suspect with ties to American adversary gets break from federal judge
A Russian-born scientist and Harvard University cancer researcher accused of smuggling frog embryos into the United States has been released following four months in federal custody Thursday. Kseniia Petrova, 30, was arrested in February after returning from a vacation in France, where she had obtained a package of superfine sections of frog embryos from a laboratory for research. Upon arriving at Boston Logan International Airport, Petrova was questioned by U.S. Customs and Border Protection regarding the materials. "I just want to thank everybody," Petrova said on the steps of the federal courthouse in Boston following her release. "A lot of people started contacting me and sending me letters, and it was a huge support without which I won't be able to survive." Following the interview, the researcher was informed her visa was being canceled. The Department of Homeland Security previously said in a statement posted on social media that Petrova was arrested for "lying to federal officers about carrying substances into the country," adding that messages on her phone "revealed she planned to smuggle the materials through customs without declaring them." The Department of Homeland Security and Harvard University did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. In an April interview with The Associated Press, Petrova said she was unaware the samples needed to be declared upon her return and insisted she was not trying to smuggle anything into the country. Petrova was initially detained by immigration officials in Vermont before being sent to a facility in Louisiana. In May, she was formally charged with smuggling in Massachusetts, with a federal judge in Vermont setting a hearing date on her petition seeking release. The federal judge in Vermont later ruled that the actions of the immigration officers were unlawful and that Petrova "posed a threat to no one." She was subsequently released from ICE custody but remained in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service due to the smuggling charge. On Thursday, Magistrate Judge Judith Dein approved an agreement between federal prosecutors and Petrova's immigration attorney, effectively releasing the researcher but limiting her ability to travel while maintaining custody of her passport. "I hear it's sunny," Dein told Petrova after her release. "Goodbye." Petrova's colleagues have previously testified on her behalf, telling the court she is conducting valuable research that aids in searching for a cure for cancer. Greg Romanovsky, the immigration attorney representing Petrova, said his client has not "decided whether she wants to stay in the United States yet." "She has offers from different countries around the world, countries that are eager to support the important research that she's doing," he said. "She's weighing her options at the moment, and she's very grateful to be out." Romanovsky did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. Under the conditions of her release, Petrova must report any contact with law enforcement – including ICE – to her supervising officer within 24 hours, according to court documents obtained by Fox News Digital. Petrova is scheduled to return to court next week for a probable cause hearing regarding the smuggling charge.
CTV News
12-06-2025
- CTV News
Harvard researcher charged with smuggling frog embryos faces detention hearing
Travelers pull luggage while walking on a pedestrian bridge between terminals at Logan International Airport, in Boston., Wednesday, Nov. 24, 2021, the day before Thanksgiving. (AP Photo/Steven Senne) BOSTON — A Russian-born scientist and Harvard University researcher charged with smuggling frog embryos into the United States faces a detention hearing in Massachusetts on Thursday. Kseniia Petrova, 30, has been in federal custody since February and is seeking to be released. Petrova was returning from a vacation in France, where she had stopped at a lab specializing in splicing superfine sections of frog embryos and obtained a package of samples for research. She was later questioned about the samples while passing through a U.S. Customs and Border Protection checkpoint at Boston Logan International Airport. She told The Associated Press in an interview in April that she did not realize the items needed to be declared and was not trying to sneak anything into the country. After an interrogation, Petrova was told her visa was being canceled. Petrova was briefly detained by immigration officials in Vermont, where she filed a petition seeking her release. She was later sent to an ICE facility in Louisiana. The Department of Homeland Security had said in a statement on the social media platform X that Petrova was detained after 'lying to federal officers about carrying substances into the country.' They allege that messages on her phone 'revealed she planned to smuggle the materials through customs without declaring them.' In May, Petrova was charged with smuggling in Massachusetts as a federal judge in Vermont set the hearing date on her petition. That judge later ruled that the immigration officers' actions were unlawful, that Petrova didn't present a danger, and that the embryos were nonliving, nonhazardous and 'posed a threat to no one.' The judge released Petrova from ICE custody, but she remains in the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service on the smuggling charge. Colleagues and academics have testified on Petrova's behalf, saying she is doing valuable research to advance cures for cancer. The Associated Press
Washington Post
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Washington Post
Judge: Harvard researcher charged with smuggling frog embryos was unlawfully detained by ICE
A federal judge in Vermont on Wednesday released a Russian-born scientist and Harvard University researcher from immigration custody as she deals with a criminal charge of smuggling frog embryos into the United States. Colleagues and academics also testified on Kseniia Petrova's behalf, saying she is doing valuable research to advance cures for cancer.
