Who Was Griner Swapped With?
Griner, 32, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and star of the Phoenix Mercury of the Women’s National Basketball Association, was detained on February 17 at a Moscow airport after marijuana oil vape cartridges, which are illegal in Russia, were discovered in her luggage. At Griner’s trial, she had entered a guilty plea and claimed that…
Griner, 32, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and star of the Phoenix Mercury of the Women’s National Basketball Association, was detained on February 17 at a Moscow airport after marijuana oil vape cartridges, which are illegal in Russia, were discovered in her luggage.
At Griner’s trial, she had entered a guilty plea and claimed that she had used the cartridges to treat sports-related injuries and had made a “honest mistake.” She was nonetheless given a nine-year prison term on August 4.
Who Was Griner Swapped With?
Eight-time WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner was permitted to return to the United States following her 10-month detention in Russia, where she was also sentenced to nine years in prison on drug-related charges. Viktor Bout, a convicted Russian arms dealer, was included in a prisoner swap that was negotiated by the Joe Biden administration.
The 55-year-old Russian citizen Bout, who was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2012 by a U.S. court on charges related to his career as an arms dealer, was traded for Griner, according to the foreign ministry of Russia.
