A Russian woman living in Leesburg, Virginia, pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to an unusual smuggling incident that happened last year at Dulles Airport.
The office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia said that Polina Perelman denied on a customs declaration that she had any animal products or cell cultures. But the woman, who told the court that she is a research scientist in molecular biology, was found to have vials containing 19 DNA samples, two of which are of endangered species — Siberian crane and dhole, a wild dog native to several parts of Asia.
According to a U.S. Attorney’s Office news release, Perelman told the court that she does genetic sequencing to study evolution.
The violation carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, but actual sentences are typically less than the maximum.
Perelman is scheduled to be sentenced on Wednesday, Aug. 23.
WTOP has reached out to Perelman’s lawyer for comment.
