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Brittany Griner’s agent spoke on Tuesday After WNBA Superstars The Russian detention was extended for a few more weeks.
Lindsey Kagawa Kolas wrote on Twitter that the decision was further evidence that the Phoenix Mercury Center was “being used as a political pawn.” He called on President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to take immediate action to bring the basketball player home from Moscow.
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WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittany Griner leaves the courtroom after a hearing in Khimki, just outside Moscow, Russia, Friday, May 13, 2022.
(AP photo/Alexander Zemlyanichenko)
“Today’s expansion is just further reinforcement that Brittany Griner – an Olympian and a US citizen – is being used as a political pawn,” Kagawa-Kolas tweeted. “His detention is inhuman and unacceptable. Not a single call has been received from him in his 117 days of wrongful custody, and we call @POTUS and @VP . Feather Do whatever is necessary to take immediate action and get Britney home immediately.”
FILE – Brittany Griner (42) of the Phoenix Mercury is greeted for a play against the Seattle Storm in the first half of the second round of the WNBA Basketball Playoffs on Sunday, September 26, 2021 in Everett, Wash.
(AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, FILE)
Griner was arrested in February for trying to get vape cartridges containing hemp-oiled oil through a Moscow airport. She has since held with limited public appearances. A Moscow court has extended Griner’s custody until July 2. This is the third time his detention has been extended, Russian state-run media TASS reported.
It is rumored that Griner will likely be involved in a prisoner swap involving Victor Bout, who has been sentenced to 25 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to kill Americans related to his support of a Colombian terrorist organization. is in the middle of his sentence.
According to TASS, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said officials would not consider Griner for a prisoner swap with the US “until a court investigation into his case is complete”.
Ariel Powers of the Minnesota Lynx wears a shirt in support of Brittany Griner during the introduction for the team’s WNBA basketball game against the Seattle Storm on Tuesday, June 14, 2022 in Minneapolis.
(Carlos Gonzalez/Star Tribune via AP)
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Griner may face Up to 10 years in Russian prison if convicted.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.