NBC published an article on Monday with the title “New images could change cancer diagnostics, but ICE detained the Harvard scientist who analyzes them.” The subheading reads “Without scientist Kseniia Petrova’s expertise, no one can fully unlock the data’s potential, putting crucial advancements in early cancer detection at risk.”
The article, written by Jean Lee, begins as such:
A groundbreaking microscope at Harvard Medical School could lead to breakthroughs in cancer detection and research into longevity. But the scientist who developed computer scripts to read its images and unlock its full potential has been in an immigration detention center for two months — putting crucial scientific advancements at risk.
The scientist, the 30-year-old Russian-born Kseniia Petrova, worked at Harvard’s renowned Kirschner Lab until her arrest at a Boston airport in mid-February. She is now being held at ICE’s Richwood Correctional Center in Monroe, Louisiana, and fighting possible deportation to Russia, where she said she fears persecution and jail time over her protests against the war in Ukraine.
The rest of the article is a sob story about how we’re all going to die because the United States dared to detain this woman, who is a Russian citizen here on a visa, and how “a growing number of international scientists are increasingly worried by how immigration policies are being enforced in the United States.”
But the Department of Homeland Security responded today on X, pointing out what the extremely biased article, full of half-truths, fails to mention:
The individual was lawfully detained after lying to federal officers about carrying substances into the country. A subsequent K9 inspection uncovered undeclared petri dishes, containers of unknown substances, and loose vials of embryonic frog cells, all without proper permits. Messages found on her phone revealed she planned to smuggle the materials through customs without declaring them. She knowingly broke the law and took deliberate steps to evade it.
Here is the full X post:
The individual was lawfully detained after lying to federal officers about carrying substances into the country.
A subsequent K9 inspection uncovered undeclared petri dishes, containers of unknown substances, and loose vials of embryonic frog cells, all without proper permits.… https://t.co/T0bFUZUs01
— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) April 22, 2025
Here’s what I’d like to know: Why isn’t NBC writing an article on how unfortunate it is that this woman could have led to a breakthrough in early cancer detection, but she made the stupid mistake of bringing “undeclared petri dishes” into the country? Why isn’t NBC criticizing her carelessness or mal intent? Why are they blaming people who are enforcing the law and not the person who broke it?
You can’t just bring “containers of unknown substances” into the country just because NBC and some people at Harvard think you’re a good egg, especially if you’re coming from a country that may not have our best interests in mind. What if the next Russian citizen is bringing containers of biological weapons? What if this one was trying to do so?
As Secretary of State Marco Rubio has pointed out countless times over the last three months, a visa is not a right; it’s a privilege. If you break the law, it leads to revocation. If you’re coming into the country on one, you better make sure you dot all of your I’s and cross all of your T’s.
I mean, I’m a U.S. citizen, born and raised. I travel to Latin America fairly frequently. When I get there, I make sure I’m following all of their rules, and when I come home, I make sure I’m following ours. I would never dream of trying to sneak something into the country, no matter what purpose I thought it might serve. If I thought there was a chance to be deported back to a country like Russia, I’d be especially cautious.
How hard is this to understand?
But that seems to be the norm for how the legacy media operates these days, and leftists lap it up because they’ve been running around, throwing out pronouns, spending tax dollars on outlandish foreign aid programs, and letting the entire world cross the border unchecked, like the United States is their own personal country club for the last however many years. We finally have an adult in charge who is simply enforcing rules and laws that are on the books and not letting people do whatever the heck they please in the name of national security or allowing people to keep their hard-earned cash. It’s like teenagers throwing a fit because their parents gave them a curfew.
Donald Trump fires federal workers who served no purpose, saving the taxpayers money? The media headlines are about how Trump is mean, not about how the ones who came before him robbed taxpayers and created these purposeless jobs.
Luigi Mangione kills a guy because he doesn’t like the company he runs? The media headlines are about how the company is evil, not about the cold-blooded murderer.
An illegal immigrant who has ties to MS-13, has reportedly been involved with human trafficking, and who beats his wife to boot, is shipped back to his home country? The media headlines are about a poor downtrodden father who was just minding his own business when he got deported by the big mean Trump administration — nothing about why the guy is even here in the first place.
Rubio revokes a pro-Hamas activist’s visa? The media headline is about how a hard-working college student fell prey to the State Department and should be able to express his right to free speech, not about how he supports a terrorist organization and terrorizes and disrupts the lives of students who are actually there to study.
It’s always someone else’s fault. Why can’t they just admit that these people have broken the rules?
Have you heard the news? Our parent company, Salem Media Group, has partnered with MxM News, Donald Trump, Jr., and Lara Trump to build something big. It’s a huge step toward growing conservative media and finally drowning out the voices of the MSM.
We hope you’ll join our fight! Right now, you can become a PJ Media VIP member for only $1.63 a month or less than $20 a year and gain a few perks for yourself too. Just click this link to sign up and use the code word FIGHT to ensure you get the best possible deal. We can’t wait for you to join us.
