July 2 () –
The trial against the American WNBA player Brittney Griner began this Friday in a court near Moscow, in the Russian capital, accused of alleged drug smuggling for which she can face up to ten years in prison.
The athlete, who has been in preventive detention since February, has seen this precautionary measure extended — for the fourth time — until December 20.
Griner was detained after trying to enter Russia from New York through Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport, where cannabis was found in her luggage. The prosecutor has revealed this Friday details about the charges.
“Being (Brittney Griner) well aware that it is prohibited to transport narcotic substances in the Eurasian Economic Union, she bought two cartridges containing 0.252 and 0.45 grams of cannabis oil,” explained the prosecutor, according to the Russian agency TASS.
Likewise, the Kremlin has assured that Griner’s arrest “cannot be politically motivated.”
“The facts are that a famous athlete was detained with prohibited compounds containing narcotic substances. Russian legislation has provisions stipulating punishment for such crimes. However, this is only a statement of what she has been detained with and what she is in our legislation,” said Kremlin spokesman Dimitri Peskov.
Russian authorities found cartridges for vaping hashish oil in her luggage to the Phoenix Mercury player, who now faces a sentence of between five and ten years in prison.
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