The American Olympic basketball champion, Brittney Griner, was arrested in Russia after being accused of carrying narcotics, according to Russian authorities and American sports authorities, in the midst of a crisis between the West and Moscow after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“USA Basketball is aware of and closely following the legal situation facing Brittney Griner in Russia,” officials of the United States national team wrote on Twitter, conveying their “concern” for “safety and well-being.” of the player
Her club, the Phoenix Mercury, and the American Professional Players Union (WNBPA) said they were “informed” of Brittney Griner’s situation.
It would have been cannabis oil
It was in February when the inspection of the hand luggage carried by the player, who arrived in Russia on a flight from New York, would have made it possible to “confirm the presence of material for vaping and a liquid that had a particular smell,” according to the Russian federal customs service in a statement.
An expert was later able to establish that it was cannabis oil, according to that statement.
Customs had not revealed the identity of the woman but specified that she is “a member of the American National Basketball Association (WNBA) and double Olympic basketball champion with the American team.”
Brittney Griner’s track record fits that description, as she won her second Olympic gold at the Tokyo Games last year. The athlete is now exposed to a sentence of between 5 and 10 years in prison, according to the same source.
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