Brittney Griner gets emotional recounting her detainment in Russia

Brittney Griner gets emotional recounting her detainment in RussiaShow more

Brittney Griner ; born October 18, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist with the U.S. women's national basketball team and a six-time WNBA All-Star. She was additionally named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023

On February 17, 2022, Griner was arrested on drug smuggling charges in Russia. She was detained at Sheremetyevo International Airport after the Federal Customs Service found she was carrying vaporizer cartridges containing less than a gram of hash oil. In Arizona, she had been prescribed medicinal cannabis, which is illegal in Russia.
Some U.S. officials expressed concern that Russia may have been using Griner as leverage in response to the international sanctions imposed against Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. The former Pentagon official Evelyn Farkas expressed concern that Griner could be used as a "high-profile hostage" by Russia. In May 2022, the U.S. State Department stated that they had determined Griner was being "wrongfully detained". On May 15, it was reported that the United States and Russia would consider a prisoner swap, with Russia exchanging Griner for arms dealer Viktor Bout, who had served 10 years of a 25-year federal prison sentence in the United States.

Brittney Griner 'wanted to take my life' while in Russia jail
https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/40066901/brittney-griner-wanted-take-my-life-jailed-russia

Brittney Griner reveals she thought about killing herself while she was jailed in Russia
https://nypost.com/2024/05/02/sports/brittney-griner-thought-about-killing-herself-in-russian-prison/amp/