Brittney Griner

Griner was traded for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. The swap did not include retired Marine Paul Whelan who remains imprisoned in Russia, ...

The White House said it made a "substantial offer" over the summer — widely reported to involve a [suggested trade](https://www.npr.org/2022/08/02/1115113622/jailed-arms-dealer-bout-the-merchant-of-death-may-be-swapped-for-2-americans) of Bout — in exchange for Griner and Whelan. Last month, she was transferred to a prison colony in Mordovia — 300 miles southeast of Moscow — to begin serving out her sentence. He said last month that he hoped Russian President Vladimir Putin would be more willing to discuss a prisoner exchange after the U.S. "The Russian citizen has been returned to his homeland." The president was under increasing pressure to secure Griner's release. Marine Paul Whelan who remains imprisoned in Russia, on espionage charges that the U.S. "We will never give up." The exchange did not include former U.S. Griner's detention had been a top priority for Biden and his administration. She's on a plane. "She's safe. "

US basketball star Brittney Griner has been released in a prisoner swap with Russia and is now in US custody, President Joe Biden said on Thursday.

US agrees to free convicted arms dealer for two-time Olympic gold medalist held in Russian prison.

This morning, I joined President Biden, Vice President Harris, National Security Advisor Sullivan, and Cherelle Griner in the Oval Office, as Cherelle spoke ...

Player released in exchange for imprisoned Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

US President Joe Biden says US women's basketball star Brittney Griner is “on her way home” after Moscow reported she had been exchanged in a prisoner swap ...

Those who have who have worked with Mercury center Brittney Griner throughout her basketball career expressed relief and gratitude that she is headed home ...

"There has not been a day over the past ten months where we all haven't had Brittney Griner on our minds and in our hearts," WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said in a statement. Our prayers remain with her and her family as they recover and heal together." "The emotions for our organization, just like for our fans and so many across the world, are those of joyous celebration, deep gratitude, grief for the time lost, and sincere hope for all families still awaiting the return of a loved one." "I cried, and I'm a girl from Philly. and then, honestly, I cried," Staley said on ESPN's "First Take." "It has been a terrible ordeal for BG, but thankful for President Biden and Vice President [Kamala] Harris and everyone that has helped get her home.

Roosevelt Room 8:38 A.M. ESTTHE PRESIDENT: Well, good morning, folks. And it is a good morning. Moments ago, standing together with her.

See the moment Brittney Griner was swapped for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. The two prisoners were exchanged on a UAE airport tarmac, ending Griner's ...

"I had to give the sentence I gave." She was charged with the large-scale transportation of drugs and moved to a Russian jail shortly after, before sitting for a trial in Russia. He was subsequently convicted of espionage and sentenced to 16 years in Russian prison, with the possibility of serving time at a labor camp. He offered to sell weapons to the rebels, even with the understanding that the materials could have been used to kill Americans. For most of Griner's detainment, the US attempted to negotiate a two-for-one swap involving the release of both the basketball star and fellow wrongfully detained American Paul Whelan. Scheindlin — a then-federal judge for the US District Court for the Southern District of New York who ruled on the case — thought her mandatory minimum 25-year sentence "was too high in the first place." Instead, Bout was caught in a Drug Enforcement Agency sting operation. But even so, the Hon. Griner then walks off with the American man who had been escorting Bout. She is on her way home," at 8:14 a.m. She is on a plane. In the clip, the trio, plus Griner, approaches Bout along with another suited man.

Brittney Griner is returning to the U.S. after a prisoner exchange with Russia. It's Thursday's news.

“The Philadelphia House Delegation is proud to join in welcoming Brittney Griner home from nine months of illegal and unjust detention in Russia.

Deal led to exchange of notorious arms trafficker for US basketball star while not including former marine.

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US basketball star Brittney Griner has been released in a prisoner swap with Russia in exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout and was heading home on Thursday ...

The swap was a rare instance of co-operation between the US and Russia since the invasion of Ukraine. officials in the UAE verified Griner had arrived there. Biden said Griner was in good spirits and had displayed “grit and incredible dignity” throughout the ordeal. Biden said it was his job as president “to make the hard calls and protect American citizens everywhere.” The two countries also swapped prisoners in April when Russia released former U.S. “In the middle of the night they simply woke me up and said 'Get your things together',” he said.

The US basketball star Brittney Griner was released from Russian jail on December 8 in a prisoner swap for notorious arms dealer Victor Bout, known ...

Bout was detained in Thailand’s capital of Bangkok in 2008 in a US sting operation where he thought he was meeting with Colombian guerrillas and arrested under a warrant issued by a local court at the behest of the US. Russian Ambassador to the US Anatoly Antonov said the same day that Russia will continue its work to release all Russians who were jailed by the US. He had been one of the world's most notorious arms dealers, selling arms to Afghanistan, Asia and Latin America. “Viktor Bout's Afghanistan dealings were always controversial,” Samuel Ramani, an associate fellow of the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies at Oxford University, said in a tweet. Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and star of the Women's National Basketball Association's Phoenix Mercury, was arrested on February 17 after spending a few months playing professional basketball in the Russian regions. Bout was born in Tajik capital of Dushanbe in Soviet times. "The choice before us was one or none," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told CBS News. [Bout arrived in Moscow to a media circus](https://drive.google.com/file/d/1jfGECP3gMCs-5bbi-8liBxVZZ9ZANdZT/view?usp=share_link) where he was met by his mother and wife. She was sentenced on August 4 to nine years in a penal colony. "The swap of Viktor Bout for US basketball player Brittney Griner can truly be described as a New Year gift. The elaborate swap involved two private planes bringing the pair to Abu Dhabi airport from Moscow and Washington, and then flying them home. The two prisoners were exchanged in Abu Dhabi airport before flying home and both received full pardons.

Griner, 32, a two-time Olympic gold medallist and star of the Women's National Basketball Association's Phoenix Mercury, was arrested on February 17 at a ...

Bout was one of the world's most wanted men before his arrest in 2008 in Thailand in a sting operation by US agents who recorded him offering to sell missiles to people he believed were Colombian guerrillas. I was arrested for a crime that never occurred.” A conditional grant of clemency for Bout was not completed until Thursday, after US officials in the UAE verified that Griner had arrived there. US officials spoke to him on Thursday about the Griner deal. Griner's family extended their gratitude to Biden and said they were praying for Whelan's release. Biden and US Vice-President Kamala Harris spoke by phone with Griner from the Oval Office, along with Griner's wife, Cherelle. Griner's teammates and other Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) players cheered at the news of her release. The two countries also swopped prisoners in April when Russia released former US Marine Trevor Reed and the US released Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko. “The choice before us was one or none,” US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told CBS News. Russia rejected Biden's attempt to gain the freedom of Paul Whelan, a former Marine also held in Russia, forcing Biden to opt to get only Griner out. Nevertheless, she was sentenced on August 4 to nine years in a penal colony. We never stopped pushing for her release.”

American basketball star Brittney Griner returned to the United States early Friday after being freed in a high-profile prisoner exchange following nearly ...

In a Thursday press conference, Biden said he spoke by phone to Griner and that she was safe and relieved but deserved privacy and rest. The Biden Administration negotiated her release in exchange for officials said she would receive specialized medical services and counseling.

Griner was jailed for carrying cannabis oil at a Moscow airport in February, and was exchanged for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout on Thursday. The pair were ...

In the video, apparently provided by Russian security services, Bout was warmly greeted by two Russian officials as Griner, who is 6ft 9in (206cm), looks on. Pictures showed him hugging his mother and wife at the airport tarmac. During her trial in Russia, she said the cannabis oil found in her bag had been an "honest mistake". She is one of the best-known sportswomen in America. Footage on Russian state media showed them crossing on the tarmac with their respective teams. He has been held in an American prison for 12 years.

Basketball star lands at Texas airbase after being swapped for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

In releasing Bout, the US freed a former Soviet army lieutenant colonel whom the Justice Department once described as one of the world’s most prolific arms dealers. Before her conviction, the US state department declared her to be wrongfully detained, a charge that Russia has sharply rejected. Griner is a two-time Olympic gold medalist, Baylor University All-American and Phoenix Mercury pro basketball star.

The Olympic gold medallist was convicted of drug smuggling and freed in a prisoner swap for a Russian arms dealer known as the “Merchant of Death.”

American basketball star Brittney Griner returned to the United States early Friday after being freed in a high-profile prisoner exchange following nearly ...