WNBA star Brittany Griner pleads guilty in Russia, tells court she accidentally brought marijuana into the country
WNBA star Brittany Griner pleaded guilty Thursday to charges of drug possession and trafficking in Russia, telling a Moscow court that she brought marijuana into the country by accident.
grinner was arrested At Moscow airport in February when Russian officials claimed he had cannabis oil in his luggage. A Russian judge ordered Griner, the Phoenix Mercury Center who played in Russia during the WNBA off-season, to remain in custody.
“I would like to plead guilty to the charges against me, but I had no intention of breaking any Russian law,” she told the court. “I was packing in a hurry and the cartridges accidentally landed in my bag.”
Evgenia Novozhenina / Reuters
Griner could face 10 years in Russian prison if convicted of drug trafficking.
In Griner’s handwritten letter In what was delivered to the White House on Monday, the WNBA player wrote how terrified she was that she could be imprisoned “forever” in Russia.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
