Brittney Griner’s life changed completely on February 17, 2022, when she was detained at Sheremetyevo International Airport in Khimki, Russia, as she was playing in the country during the WNBA’s off-season. Griner was caught with a vape cartridge that had hash oil in it, which was illegal in the country.
As a result, Griner has been battling for her freedom in Russia ever since. Griner was stuck in Russia just as the Russia-Ukraine war was beginning, making Griner a political prisoner in the country. After 10 months of advocating for her release, the USA has finally agreed upon a prisoner swap with Russia, sending a former convicted arms dealer to his homeland in exchange for Griner.
BREAKING: Brittney Griner, the WNBA star who was sentenced to prison in Russia, has been freed in a prisoner-swap and is now in US custody, a US official tells @CBSNews.
— Steven Portnoy (@stevenportnoy) December 8, 2022
Griner was serving a 9-year sentence in a penal colony where she would’ve been a target as a result of being American, as well as openly LGBTQ+. The WNBA players that have been advocating for Griner’s freedom for the last 10 months can finally breathe a sigh of relief as the Phoenix Mercury star will spend Christmas with her family in the USA.
The Timeline Of Griner’s Russian Arrest
Griner was arrested 7 days before Russia began its invasion of Ukraine, which the United States was heavily against. This made Griner an extremely notable prisoner on Russian soil.
During her detention, we saw multiple NBA and WNBA players advocate for her freedom. Stephen Curry, LeBron James, Kyrie Irving, and many others lent their voice to the cause, advocating for her freedom. She was sentenced to 9 years in prison in August after a controversial trial.
She will be coming back home, and the basketball community will rejoice at the news.
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