American basketball star, Brittney Griner, 31, has been detained in Moscow for the past four and a half months after her arrest on charges of cannabis oil possession.
She was caught at the Moscow airport carrying vape canisters with cannabis oil and could face up to 10 years in prison for the transport of illegal drugs. She was traveling to play for a Russian team.
She went on trial on Friday, in a case even more notable due to tense relations between Russia and the US. Griner was arrested shortly before Russia sent troops to Ukraine.
Griner is a WNBA superstar and two-time US Olympic gold medalist.
At a preliminary hearing on Monday, Griner’s detention was extended until December. Another court hearing is scheduled for July 7.
Elizabeth Rood, US charge d’affaires in Moscow, was in court and said she spoke with Griner, who “is doing as well as can be expected in these difficult circumstances.”
“The Russian Federation has wrongfully detained Brittney Griner,” Rood said. “The practice of wrongful detention is unacceptable wherever it occurs and is a threat to the safety of everyone traveling, working, and living abroad.”
The US government is working hard on securing Briner’s return to the US.
A spokesperson for the Kremlin, Dmitry Peskov, said that politics was not a factor in the case.
“The facts are that the famous athlete was detained in possession of prohibited medication containing narcotic substances,” Peskov told reporters.
Griner’s supporters and family are hoping for a prisoner swap.
When asked by CNN on Sunday whether a swap was being considered, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken avoided the direct question.
“As a general proposition … I have got no higher priority than making sure that Americans who are being illegally detained in one way or another around the world come home,” he said. But he said he could not comment “in any detail on what we’re doing, except to say this is an absolute priority.”
A report from the State Department found that, in 2020, only 0.34% of defendants in Russia were acquitted.
