The basketball player nord-americana Brittney Grinerarrested in February and charged with possession and smuggling of drugshas been sentenced to nine years in prison for the justice of Russia after pleading guilty last month to carrying in his luggage cartridges with cannabis oil.
As the judge quickly read her sentence, Griner listened to the outcome through an interpreter. His legal team has reported that he will appeal this sentence, as reported by the newspaper ‘The Washington Post’.
Previously, the Russian Prosecutor’s Office had asked for Griner, 31, who was arrested in February at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow for drug possession, a sentence of nine years and six months in prison.
His lawyer, Alexander Boikov, claimed that the athlete has acknowledged that they were his, but that he took them to Russia accidentally. Griner, who plays for a Russian basketball team during the WNBA offseason, has not made any public statements since her arrest.
After the sentence, the President of the United States, Joe Biden, has indicated in a statement that this sentence against the athlete “is one more reminder of what the world already knew”, that Moscow “is arresting Brittney by mistake”.
“This is unacceptable and I am calling on Russia to release him immediately so he can be with his wife, loved ones, friends and teammates. My Administration will continue to work tirelessly and pursue every avenue possible to bring Brittney and Paul Whelan to home out of danger as soon as possible”, he decided, referring to the former American marine, convicted of espionage in Russia.
