WNBA star Britney Grinner appeared at a preliminary hearing in Moscow on Monday more than three months after she was detained in Russia.
Greener did not answer a question from an ABC News reporter when he left the courtroom. Her lawyer did not comment after the hearing. The next meeting is scheduled for July 1.
Greener was detained at Russia’s Sheremetyevo International Airport on February 17th after being accused of carrying vape cartridges containing hashish oil, which is illegal in Russia.
The US State Department said Greener was “illegally detained” by Russia.
“Our position on this for some time is very clear. Britney Greener should not be detained. She should not be detained for another day,” State Department spokesman Ned Price said on June 14.
Russia has repeatedly extended her detention. If convicted, Griner, 31, faces up to 10 years in prison.
WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Britney Grinner leaves the courtroom after a hearing in Khimki, near Moscow, on May 13, 2022.
Alexander Zemlyanichenko / AP, FILE
Greener’s wife, Sherel Greener, told the Associated Press that there was no “zero confidence” in the US government after it managed to detain her wife.
American basketball star Britney Griner, handcuffed, arrives for a court hearing in Khimki near Moscow, June 27, 2022. Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and WNBA champion, was detained at Moscow airport in February on charges of carrying luggage. your vape cartridges with cannabis oil, which could carry a sentence of 10 years in prison.
Kiril Kudryavtsev / AFP via Getty Images
The Russian invasion of Ukraine began a week after Griner’s arrest. Some officials are concerned that Americans imprisoned in Russia could be used as a lever in the ongoing conflict.
Cherry Greener told Good Morning America co-host Robin Roberts in May that she would like to speak with President Joe Biden.
“I keep hearing that he has power. She is a political pawn,” she said. “So if they keep it because they want you to do something, I want you to do it.”
Asked last week about a potential meeting between Sherel Griner and President Biden, Jean-Pierre said: “We have nothing to share about a potential telephone conversation or meeting.”
Tanya Stukalova from ABC News contributed to this report.
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