Israeli-Russian Scientist Jailed 3.5 Years in Russia for $14 Donation

Sophia Rosenfeld, a Russian scientist holding dual Israeli citizenship, was sentenced to three and a half years in prison by a Moscow court on Wednesday for funding an "extremist organization." The charges stemmed from two transfers of 1,000 rubles each, equivalent to about $12 to $14, made in 2021 to the Anti-Corruption Foundation of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. Rosenfeld, 50, a senior researcher at the Russian Academy of Sciences, moved to Israel with her family at age 14 in 1990 but returned to Russia for her studies about 18 months later. She maintained her Israeli citizenship and visited Israel annually.

Her father, Boris Rosenfeld, told Ynet that his daughter made the donations when Navalny's organization was still legal. He stated she was unaware it was later outlawed, as she was on a research expedition in the Arctic and disconnected from the outside world at the time the transfers occurred. Upon returning to Moscow in 2021, she canceled the recurring payments, but the two donations had already been processed. No action was taken against her for four years.

Proceedings against Rosenfeld began in late 2025, with an indictment filed in December of the previous year. She was allowed to remain free but was prohibited from traveling or leaving Moscow. Her father had warned her against returning to Russia, but he noted there were no specific signs of impending trouble. Sophia had hoped for a fine or community service, but instead, she was taken directly from the courtroom to prison, where she has been held since last Wednesday.

Contact with Rosenfeld is severely limited, with communication possible only through letters via the Russian prison system. Her father described the process as "Kafkaesque" and expressed concern that Russia might be seeking to negotiate a deal involving Israelis. He refrained from attributing the sentence to antisemitism or anti-Israel sentiment but did not rule out the possibility, noting the sentence was handed down on October 7, calling it "symbolic."

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed it is in contact with the family and is working with Russian authorities to provide consular services. Rosenfeld's case is part of a broader crackdown in Russia, where approximately 220 sentences have been issued in recent years for donations to the Anti-Corruption Foundation, including about 24 prison sentences. This is reportedly the third case of a woman receiving a prison sentence for donating to Navalny's organization and the second case involving an Israeli citizen receiving a prison sentence in Russia for a political case.