Brittney Griner Released From Russian Prison In Prisoner Trade For Viktor Bout

After a Russian tribunal recovered Brittney Griner guilty of cause charges, President Joe Biden vowed that his medication would “work tireless and prosecute each imaginable avenue” to bring her home. Those efforts person paid off. On Dec. 8, 2022, the Associated Press confirmed that Brittney would beryllium granted her merchandise arsenic portion of a captive swap with Russia. The U.S. volition beryllium releasing Russian arms trader Viktor Bout successful speech for the merchandise of Brittney.

Before Britney’s conviction, determination were talks of her being progressive successful a captive swap. Reports claimed the U.S. was consenting to commercialized Viktor Bout, a convicted Russian arms dealer, for Brittney and erstwhile Marine Paul Whelan. Whelan, present a firm information executive, was arrested successful December 2018 connected espionage charges (Whelan has maintained his innocence.) He was sentenced to 16 years successful situation successful June 2020. On Aug. 5, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Russia was “ready to sermon this topic” of a trade, per Axios.

In the leadup to her trial, U.S. State Department listed Britney arsenic being “wrongfully detained,” a word that President Biden utilized successful his connection pursuing her conviction. “Today, American national Britney Griner received a situation condemnation that is 1 much reminder of what the satellite already knew: Russia is wrongfully detaining Britney,” helium said successful his statement.

The play began connected Feb. 17, erstwhile Brittney was arrested astatine the Moscow airport. The hoops prima was traveling to the state to play for Russia’s UMMC Ekaterinburg during the WNBA offseason and was taken into custody aft authorities accused her of cause smuggling. Brittney allegedly had little than 1 gram of cannabis lipid successful her luggage. She would yet accidental she accidentally packed the vape cartridges successful her luggage due to the fact that she was successful a hurry to marque her flight. Russia continued to detain Griner for months until her July 1 trial.

Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP/Shutterstock

Griner pled blameworthy to cause charges and hoped for leniency from the court. “Considering the quality of her case, the insignificant magnitude of the substance and [Griner’s] property and past of affirmative contributions to planetary and Russian sport, the defence hopes that the plea volition beryllium considered by the tribunal arsenic a mitigating origin and determination volition beryllium nary terrible sentence,” her lawyers said successful a statement, per CNN. Her attorneys besides noted that samples taken from Britney didn’t amusement immoderate traces of drugs.

The Russian courts yet sentenced her to 9 years. “We are precise disappointed by the verdict. As ineligible professionals, we judge that the tribunal should beryllium just to everyone careless of nationality,” her attorneys said successful a statement, per CNN. “The tribunal wholly ignored each the grounds of the defence and astir importantly, the blameworthy plea. This contradicts the existing ineligible practice. Taking into relationship the magnitude of the substance (not to notation the defects of the expertise) and the plea, the verdict is perfectly unreasonable. We volition surely record an appeal.”

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