The American top basketball player Brittney Griner has also been sentenced to nine years in prison by a Russian appeals court. In doing so, the judge upholds the previously imposed sentence.

Griner was arrested at Moscow Airport in February for transporting cannabis oil, which is available in drugstores in the Netherlands as CBD oil, in refill packs for e-cigarettes. The 32-year-old American Women’s League star has always said she wasn’t aware she was breaking the law.

In a statement, she said she was given the cannabis oil in the United States for pain relief, but accidentally put it in her purse in her rush. She had flown to Moscow because she wanted to play for the Russian team UMMC Yekaterinburg between American basketball seasons.

Griner’s lawyers consider the nine-year prison sentence disproportionate because she had no criminal intentions. The Russian judge disagrees. The maximum sentence for drug possession in Russia is ten years.

prisoner swap

Griner, who was in court via video link, is one of the best basketball players in the world. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and is a key player for Phoenix Mercury in the American Women’s League (WNBA).

US President Joe Biden had previously called the conviction “unacceptable” and urged Russia to release her as soon as possible. An attempt at a prisoner exchange between Russia and the United States was made last summer, but the attempt failed. Griner’s attorneys are still hoping for a prisoner swap.