Brittney Griner remains in a Russian prison.
The WNBA player is serving a 9-year sentence overseas after authorities found vape cartridges in her luggage at a Moscow airport.
The latest update revealed details about what life is like for Brittney. As reported in The Sun, Brittney, 6 foot 9, spends 23 hours a day in a small tiny cage with two other inmates.
In addition, she’s not able to shower regularly. The article says, “Prison rules dictate that inmates are only allowed to shower twice a week. It is located around an hour from Moscow.” Brittney is allowed to go outside for fresh air once a day.
Social media speaks out:
Since February 17, Brittney has been detained in Russia. Brittney admitted she mistakenly packed the vape cartridges in her luggage. Her defense argued she was prescribed cannabis for pain. On August 4, she was found guilty of drug charges and sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison.
On August 15, Brittney’s defense team filed an appeal, arguing that her sentence was excessive. The US government deemed Brittney “wrongfully detained” and offered a prison swap in exchange for her release. NPR reports, “Washington has offered to free Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer who is serving a 25-year sentence in the US and once earned the nickname the ‘Merchant of Death.’
The Guardian reports Brittney’s release isn’t a “priority” for Russia. On October 16, Yury Ushakov, an aide to Putin, said:
“In this tense situation, I think that he [Joe Biden] is thinking first and foremost about the upcoming midterm elections so he keeps emphasizing the need to bring back home the basketball player who was detained for drug smuggling. However, it’s not the main issue that we are concerned about.”
Earlier in October, Joe Biden said he didn’t have any “intentions” of meeting up with Putin, but would meet to discuss Brittney. He said,
“Look, I have no intention of meeting with him. But, for example, if he came to me at the G20 and said, ‘I want to talk about the release of Griner,’ I would meet with him.”
Cherelle Griner, Brittney’s wife, is fearful BG will be forgotten about. We hope that’s not the case; we’ll keep you updated.