Judge orders release of Harvard researcher Kseniia Petrova while her case proceeds

A federal judge in Massachusetts on Thursday ordered Harvard medical researcher Kseniia Petrova released from custody as she faces charges related to the alleged smuggling of frog embryos.

Petrova was detained by customs agents at Logan International Airport in Boston in February for allegedly trying to bring undeclared frog embryos into the U.S. as part of her research.

In comments after her release, Petrova said she was grateful to friends and colleagues who supported her and shared her story.

"After this, a lot of people started contacting me and sending me letters, sending me messages of support -- without which I wouldn't be able to survive," Petrova said. "I never felt really alone even for a minute."

Attorneys for Petrova told reporters outside the courthouse that she has a strong case but has not yet decided whether she wants to remain in the U.S.

"Her legal claim is very strong, but at this point she has not decided whether she wants to stay in the States yet. She has offers from different countries around the world -- countries that are eager to support the important research that she's doing -- she's weighing her options at the moment and she's very grateful to be out," her immigration attorney, Gregory Romanovsky, said in remarks Thursday.

Petrova will now wait for her immigration case to move forward while at home, Romanovsky said. Her attorneys said she is very grateful to the federal court for releasing her from detention.

"It's hard to explain why someone like Kseniia had to be jailed for four months. She is not a danger to anybody, she's not a flight risk but at this point the immigration case is ongoing," he said.

Petrova's attorneys did not say whether the government is still moving to deport her to Russia.

She was released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody in Louisiana by order of a federal judge last month, but was then transported to Massachusetts to await criminal charges stemming from the February incident.

Petrova will need to report to probation officers as directed and her travel is restricted to within New England. Her passport is in her physical aid file in Massachusetts, prosecutor Nadine Pellegrini told the judge on Thursday. The judge ordered that her passport remain in that file.

She will also need to avoid all contact with victims and potential witnesses in the case, the judge ordered.

Petrova was ordered released on personal recognizance, after which she walked out with her attorneys, smiling and waving to friends who had attended the hearing.

She faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 based on the federal criminal charges that were unveiled last month.

ICE has agreed it will not re-detain Petrova, and an attorney for Petrova asked that be reflected in the record.

Petrova, who appeared in court in an orange jumpsuit, was handcuffed as she entered the courtroom. Petrova's handcuffs were removed by marshals before the hearing began.

Magistrate Judge Judith Dein read Petrova her rights at the beginning of the hearing, after which Petrova nodded that she understood and said, "Yes."

Petrova is scheduled to appear in court again on Wednesday.

In the four months she was detained, she was held in Vermont, Louisiana, Oklahoma and Rhode Island, according to her attorney.