Russia to Detain WNBA Star Brittney Griner Two More Months

A Russian court has decided to extend WNBA star Brittney Griner’s detention in Moscow for two more months, according to a report.

Griner, a Houston-native who plays for the WNBA’s Pheonix Mercury in addition to playing in Russia when the WNBA is not in season, has been held in a Russian jail since last month after being arrested for having vaping cartridges that contained cannabis oils.

The cartridges were detected in her luggage during an airport security check as she was preparing to leave the country.

TASS, the Russian news agency, reported that a judge had extended Griner’s detention to at least May 19.

“The court granted the petition of the investigation and extended the term of detention of U.S. citizen Griner,” the court ruled.

(Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

As the New York Post reports, “Ekaterina Kalugina, a member of the Moscow-based Public Monitoring Commission group that observes the treatment of prisoners, told TASS that Griner was sharing a cell with two other women with no previous convictions. She added that Griner’s only issue was the prison beds were too short for her 6’7″ frame.”

“There’s only so much I can say given the privacy considerations at this point,” U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said about Griner. “Whenever an American is detained anywhere in the world, we of course stand ready to provide every possible assistance, and that includes in Russia.

“We have an embassy team that’s working on the cases of other Americans who are detained in Russia,” he added. “We’re doing everything we can to see to it that their rights are upheld and respected.”

Griner has played Russia’s Ekaterinburg in the Euroleague since 2015.