In the USA, a Harvard Medical School employee, Ksenia Petrova, was charged with smuggling after being detained for bringing in undeclared samples of frog embryos, reported the US Department of Justice.
According to the indictment documents, on February 16, 2025, Petrova arrived at Boston International Airport from Paris. A customs officer inspected the contents of Petrova's bag and discovered biological items: a foam box containing clawed frog embryos in microcentrifuges, as well as embryonic samples in paraffin wells and on mounted stained slides. All biological products require a permit for import, and Petrova was supposed to file a declaration with the customs and border service.
After the samples were discovered, her visa was canceled, and she was placed in a deportation prison—initially in Vermont, and then in Louisiana. After being charged, Ksenia Petrova was transferred to a federal prison.
Petrova previously stated that the embryo samples from the French Curie Institute were requested by her scientific supervisor: «Since these embryos are non-hazardous, non-toxic, and non-infectious, I did not expect any problems with their importation <...> As a scientist, I was more focused on delivering the samples to the laboratory for experiments before they decomposed».
According to the indictment, text messages from a colleague were found on Petrova's phone discussing the mandatory declaration of biological material. There is also a discussion from correspondence about transporting biomaterials across the border, in which the scientist jokes: «I can't swallow them».
The charge of smuggling goods in the USA carries a penalty of up to 20 years in prison, supervised release for up to five years, and a fine of up to $250,000.
As noted by the representatives of the Russian woman, the charges became known before the hearing on May 14, where her detention was contested. Petrova also has a hearing scheduled for May 28 regarding her release on bail.
In court, representatives of the US Department of Justice said they would seek her deportation to Russia, despite the scientist's defense reporting the threat of criminal prosecution for her anti-war stance: she was detained in 2022 during protests against the war in Ukraine and posted anti-war messages on social media.
Photo: Cora Anderson / Facebook