Brittney Griner detained in Russia: American basketball star found with hashish oil at airport, per reports

Seven-time WNBA All-Star center Brittney Griner, 31, has been detained by the Russian Federal Customs Service after it claims to have found hashish oil in her luggage, according to the New York Times and Russian news agency TASS. She currently plays for UMMC Ekaterinburg, a women's basketball team that competes in the Russian Premier League.

When Griner's luggage was checked at a security checkpoint at Sheremetyevo International Airport, customs allegedly found vape cartridges that contained the hashish oil. It is not known at this time whether she was exiting the country. A number of American basketball players have already left Russia and Ukraine, returning to the United States amid the ongoing war between the nations. It is unclear how long Griner has been in custody, though footage of the screening at the airport occurred in February, according to the New York Times, which suggests she may have been detained for at least three weeks.

A criminal case has been opened into Griner, who is currently in custody and could be charged with "large-scale transportation of drugs, an offense that can carry a sentence of up to 10 years behind bars in Russia," according to the Times. The investigation is ongoing.

The customs service did not identify Griner by name upon announcing her detention, but it did release a video of the incident, and TASS cited a law enforcement source confirming the person detained was Griner. The airport screening occurred in February, which means that Griner has likely been in custody ever since.

The Phoenix Mercury, who selected Griner with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 WNBA Draft, commented Saturday on the developing situation.

"We are aware of and are closely monitoring the situation with Brittney Griner in Russia. We remain in constant contact with her family, her representation, the WNBA and NBA. We love and support Brittney and at this time our main concern is her safety, physical and mental health, and her safe return home."

In addition to her All-Star accolades, Griner led the Mercury to the WNBA championship in 2014. She is also a two-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, three-time Russian National League champion and four-time EuroLeague champion who won two Olympic gold medals and two World Cups representing Team USA.

As tensions continue to rise between the United States and Russia amid the latter nation's invasion of Ukraine, there is certainly concern that Griner's detainment could be used as a political tool to create leverage given her prominent status as an athlete and celebrity.

Comments

Bill Russell Once Explained Why He Didn't Bother With Celtics Fans: "When I Was A Star, The Fans Called Us The 'Boston Globetrotters' Because The Celtics Had Black Players."

While the NBA is a beacon for freedom and tolerance in America, things didn't start off that way. In a place like Boston, during the 50s and 60s, racial tension was a pretty serious problem, and superstar big man Bill Russell had to deal with it on a game-to-game basis. Today, it can be hard for us to imagine just how difficult being a black basketball player really was back then. Fortunately, we have some clips: "The number one paper was the Boston Herald and they didn't like the idea of an NBA team having black players. Out there, the star was Bob Cousy. No matter what I did, Cousy was the star. I remember I had a game where I had 25 points, 25 rebounds, 10 blocks, and the Boston Herald said I was lucky to play with Cousy." Unfortunately, the media didn't give Russell his respect back then. Despite being the best player on the court, and on his team, Cousy and others always got the spotlight. Even the fans weren't very accepting of Bill: "I didn't...

From Deep: At long last, Nikola Jokic's Nuggets can envision getting to the top of the mountain

Jamal Murray tore his ACL on April 12, 2021. Leading up to that night, he'd been playing at an All-NBA level for two months: In a 25-game stretch, Murray averaged 24.1 points on .509/.459/.935 shooting splits, 4.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists. He was even more efficient than he was in the bubble playoffs, and his defense had improved, too. Murray only got to play with Aaron Gordon, the Denver Nuggets' big trade-deadline addition, for five games. They won them all except the one in which Murray got injured. In 110 minutes, their new starting five scored slightly more efficiently than any iteration of the Kevin Durant-era death lineup in Golden State and defended like a top-five team. Two Nikola Jokic MVP awards later, Murray is back. So is Michael Porter Jr., who signed a five-year extension about a year ago and needed back surgery nine games into the 2020-21 season. The Nuggets remember how easily everything slid into place with Gordon in the mix. Newcomer Kentavious Caldwell-Pop...

Sixers' James Harden backs teammate Joel Embiid for MVP: 'He deserves it, man'

James Harden has been a member of the Philadelphia 76ers for less than two months, but that's been more than enough time for him to appreciate the brilliance of Joel Embiid. The duo is expected to help the Sixers compete for a championship, but Harden believes another trophy should be on its way to Philly this year. In an interview with Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, Harden backed Embiid for MVP, saying "he deserves it, man." "I've only been here for a few weeks, but I already see his mindset," Harden said. "He wants to win. Some guys just want numbers, but he has both. He has the mentality of winning, and he scores the ball at a high level. I think he's prepared himself, especially coming off last year, for this year to be one of his best years." This has indeed been one of Embiid's best years. He's averaging a career-high 29.8 points, 11.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.4 blocks while shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 35.8 percent f...

Crossover World

Search This Blog