Russia arrests US basketball player Griner to nine years in prison: "Unacceptable"

Created: 08/04/2022, 19:16

By: Florian Dörr, Tim Vincent Dicke

US basketball player Brittney Griner has been sentenced to a long prison term by a Russian court.

The reaction from the White House follows promptly.

Update from Thursday, August 4th, 7:16 p.m .:

She has been in Russian captivity for over five months.

US basketball player Brittney Griner has now been sentenced to nine years in a prison camp by a Russian court near Moscow.

In addition, she should pay a fine of one million Rubens (16,000 euros), according to Russian news agencies.

The defense has already announced an appeal.

Background to the case: According to the judiciary, the 31-year-old US basketball player had so-called vape cartridges and hashish oil with her when her luggage was checked at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport in February.

It is said to have been 0.5 grams.

This was ruled as illegal drug possession and attempted smuggling.

Griner pleaded guilty.

Basketball player Brittney Griner has been sentenced to nine years in prison in Russia.

© Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP/dpa

But the process also has another component: Washington accused Moscow of conducting a politically motivated process.

In a recent phone call between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, the possibility of a prisoner exchange was also discussed, with the help of which the athlete should be released (see first report from Saturday, July 30, 10:24 a.m.).

Brittney Griner case: US President Biden on Brittney Griner's sentencing: "Unacceptable"

US President Joe Biden has now sharply criticized Griner's conviction and called for her release.

"Russia is wrongly holding Brittney," he said in a written statement.

"This is unacceptable and I urge Russia to release her immediately to be with her wife, family, friends and teammates." Biden said the US government is continuing to work tirelessly to secure Griner as soon as possible to bring home.

Before the verdict was handed down, prosecutors had asked for nine years and six months in prison, which was just under the maximum sentence of ten years.

The defense unsuccessfully demanded an acquittal for their client.

Since 2015, US basketball player Griner has played for the UMMC Yekaterinburg team in the Urals.

She won the Euroleague four times with the top women's club.

Griner is considered one of the best basketball players in the USA.

With the US national team, she won two Olympic medals and two gold medals at the World Championships.

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Russia wants to free Tiergarten killers - US prisoners as leverage

First report from Saturday, July 30, 10:24 a.m .:

In return for the release of two imprisoned US citizens, Russia has apparently demanded the release of the Tiergarten murderer Vadim K. imprisoned in Germany.

The spokesman for the US National Security Council, John Kirby, confirmed on Friday (July 29) on the US news

that Russian officials had made such a move.

However, he firmly rejected the request.

"Holding two US citizens hostage in exchange for a killer in a third country is not a serious counteroffer," Kirby said.

"It is a malicious attempt to evade a very serious US offer and proposal." Russia must take the US offer seriously.

US basketball player imprisoned in Russia: Prisoner swap with Tiergarten killer?

The United States is currently trying to free basketball player Brittney Griner, who is in prison in Russia, and former US soldier Paul Whelan, who is also in prison.

Washington has therefore submitted an offer to Moscow, which was also the subject of talks between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Friday.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei spoke on Friday (July 29, 2022).

It was also about a prisoner deal.

(Archive image) © Martial Trezzini/dpa

They had an "open and direct conversation", said Blinken afterwards.

"I have urged the Kremlin to accept the essential proposal we made to release Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner," the US Secretary of State added.

According to media reports, the US plan communicated weeks ago includes an exchange of the two US citizens with the Russian arms smuggler Viktor Bout, who is in prison in the US.

reported on Friday, citing informed circles, that Russian representatives had requested through informal channels that the United States release Vadim K. as part of a prisoner swap.

Vadim K. from Russia shot Georgians in Berlin's Tiergarten

K., who is said to have been a colonel in the Russian secret service FSB, was sentenced to life imprisonment in December 2021 for the so-called Tiergarten murder.

The Berlin Court of Appeal saw it as proven that in August 2019 he had shot a Chechen-born Georgian in the Kleiner Tiergarten on behalf of Russian state authorities.

According to

, Russia's demand for the man's release was seen as problematic, especially as K. is serving his sentence in Germany.

However, US representatives had contacted Germany to find out in principle whether K. could become part of the swap deal, the news channel reported, citing a German government official.

But that was never seriously considered.

Deal with Russia?

USA wants to continue working on it

Despite the unacceptable offer from Russia, the United States says it wants to continue to do everything possible to free the US prisoners.

"We really want Brittney and Paul to come home to their families where they belong.

They are wrongly imprisoned there.

And we're just going to keep working on it," Kirby told

.

Basketball star Griner was arrested at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport in mid-February for possession of cannabis oil.

She faces up to ten years in prison for drug smuggling.

Whelan was sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges in 2020.

(tvd/AFP)