Reuters on Thursday reported that WNBA star Brittney Griner is now in a penal colony in Russia's Mordovia region.
Officials at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport in February detained Griner — a Phoenix Mercury center and two-time Olympic gold medalist who is a lesbian and married to her wife, Cherelle Griner — after customs inspectors allegedly found hashish oil in her luggage. The State Department has determined that Russia "wrongfully detained" her.
A Russian court on August 4 convicted Brittney Griner of smuggling drugs into the country and sentenced her to nine years in a penal colony. An appellate court on October 25 denied Brittney Griner's appeal.
American officials have publicly acknowledged their willingness to release Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer who is serving a 25-year prison sentence in the U.S., as part of a deal to secure the release of Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan, another American citizen who is serving a 16-year prison sentence in Russia after his conviction for spying.
Brittney Griner's lawyers earlier this month said authorities were transferring her to a penal colony.
Her whereabouts had not been known for nearly two weeks.
Reuters reported Brittney Griner is now at a female penal colony in Yavas, a city in Russia's Mordovia region that is roughly 300 miles southeast of Moscow. Reuters noted Whelan is at a penal colony in the same area.
The Washington Blade has reached out to the State Department for comment.
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