Brittney Griner has pleaded guilty to drug possession: Russian media
Posted July 7, 2022 9:43 am.
Russian news agencies say jailed American basketball star Brittney Griner has pleaded guilty to drug possession and smuggling charges during her trial in Moscow.
The reports quoted Griner as pleading guilty to the charges at Thursday’s court hearing.
They said that speaking through an interpreter, Griner said she had acted unintentionally because she was packing in haste.
Griner was detained five months ago at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport after vape canisters with cannabis oil allegedly were found in her luggage.
She faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of large-scale transportation of drugs. The trial of the Phoenix Mercury star and two-time Olympic gold medallist began last week.
Griner wrote a letter to U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday appealing for help from Washington.
″…As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishments, I’m terrified I might be here forever,” Griner wrote.
“On the 4th of July, our family normally honors the service of those who fought for our freedom, including my father who is a Vietnam War Veteran,” the Phoenix Mercury center added. “It hurts thinking about how I usually celebrate this day because freedom means something completely different to me this year.”
Griner’s supporters have called on Washington to do a prisoner swap like the one in April that brought home Marine veteran Trevor Reed in exchange for a Russian pilot convicted of drug trafficking conspiracy. The State Department in May designated her as wrongfully detained, moving her case under the supervision of its special presidential envoy for hostage affairs, effectively the government’s chief hostage negotiator.
This is a developing story
