Ksenia Khavana, a ballet dancer with dual U. Van Heerden said he and Khavana met in in Los Angeles and have been romantically involved for the past six months. The couple celebrated the new year together in Istanbul, Turkey, before Khavana flew to her family's hometown of Yekaterinburg, Russia, about 1, miles east of Moscow.
I bought her that ticket, and I'm so angry at myself, but I didn't know. Van Heerden bought Khavana the ticket as a birthday present, saying that, although he was worried about the ongoing war in Ukraine, she alleviated his concerns. He reached out to her when he returned to Los Angeles from Turkey, but "hours went by with no response. Khavana eventually called Van Heerden from her mother's phone, saying she had been detained upon her arrival and her phone had been taken.
The next three weeks passed without incident. On the morning of Jan. But Van Heerden later received a call from Khavana's father, who told him she had been detained. Russia's Federal Security Service alleges she also took part in "public actions" in the U.
It did not provide further details about the allegations. If convicted of treason under Article of the Russian Criminal Code, Khavana faces up to 20 years in prison.
The only contact Van Heerden has had with Khavana since her detention has been via letters, which he says go through vetting protocols.
