Brittney Grier was detained by Russian police at Moscow airport after vape cartridge containing oil derived from cannabis where found in her possession; The WNBA star now awaits trial with a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison
Friday 13 May 2022 16:21, UK
WNBA Star Brittney Griner, who is currently being held in Russia, has had her pre-trial detention extended by one month, according to her lawyer.
Griner's lawyer Alexander Boikov told The Associated Press he believed the relatively short extension of the detention indicated the case would come to trial soon.
Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, was detained at the Moscow airport after vape cartridges containing oil derived from cannabis were allegedly found in her luggage, which could carry a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
The Biden administration says Griner, 31, is being wrongfully detained but there has been no visible progress towards her release despite work from both U.S officials and the WNBA.
After determining that Griner is being wrongfully detained in Russia, the United States began to work more aggressively to secure her release even as the legal case against her plays out.
Since her detainment, US officials had stopped short of classifying the Phoenix Mercury player as wrongfully detained and said instead that their focus was on ensuring that she had access in jail to American consular affairs officials.
US officials have shifted supervision of her case to a State Department office focused on negotiating for the release of hostages and other Americans deemed wrongfully detained.
It was unclear what prompted the shift, though President Joe Biden's administration had been under pressure from members of Congress and others to make Griner's release a priority.
The US just a few weeks ago secured the release of Marine veteran Trevor Reed as part of a prisoner swap that also resulted in a convicted Russian drug trafficker being freed from prison in the US.
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