Brittney Griner moved to Russian penal colony, lawyer says - NBC News

American hoops subordinate Brittney Griner, jailed successful Russia successful what the U.S. calls a wrongful detention, is being moved to a penal colony, her attorneys said Wednesday.

"We bash not person immoderate accusation connected her nonstop existent determination oregon her last destination," her attorneys, Maria Blagovolina and Alexander Boykov, said successful a statement.

Griner, a halfway for the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury, was detained astatine Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport successful February, aft Russian authorities said they recovered vape canisters with cannabis lipid successful her luggage.

Griner, 32, was sentenced to 9 years successful situation successful August; a Russian tribunal upheld the sentence past period aft her lawyers appealed.

U.S. officials see Griner to beryllium unlawfully detained. National information advisor Jake Sullivan has characterized the tribunal proceedings arsenic a sham.

White House property caput Karine Jean-Pierre said the authorities continues to enactment for her release.

“Every infinitesimal that Brittney Griner indispensable endure wrongful detention successful Russia is simply a infinitesimal excessively long,” Jean-Pierre said successful a connection Wednesday.

Griner’s ineligible squad said she was moved from a detention halfway successful Iksha, northbound of Moscow, connected Friday.

Standard Russian process is that her attorneys and the U.S. Embassy should beryllium notified erstwhile Griner reaches her destination, the lawyers said — but that is done done mail, which tin instrumentality 2 weeks.

Griner pleaded guilty in July but said she'd packed hurriedly for a formation and brought the canisters to Russia unintentionally.

Griner treated injuries with aesculapian cannabis, her attorneys argued astatine the trial. Cannabis, whether for aesculapian oregon recreational purposes, is amerciable in Russia. In the U.S., cannabis is ineligible for aesculapian purposes successful astir states.

"Our superior interest continues to beryllium BG’s wellness and well-being," Griner's agent, Lindsay Colas, said successful Wednesday's statement. "As we enactment done this precise hard signifier of not knowing precisely wherever BG is oregon however she is doing, we inquire for the public’s enactment successful continuing to constitute letters and explicit their emotion and attraction for her."

Griner is simply a two-time Olympic golden medalist and seven-time WNBA all-star. She had been successful Russia to play with a Russian Premier League women’s team, UMMC Ekaterinburg, which she has done since 2014.

She was detained successful February, astir a week earlier Russia launched an unprovoked onslaught connected Ukraine, which has further strained issues betwixt Russia and the U.S.

The U.S. has projected an speech for Griner and different American jailed successful Russia, Paul Whelan, for a convicted Russian arms trader imprisoned successful the U.S., Viktor Bout, sources person said.

Jean-Pierre said Wednesday that the U.S. "made a important connection to the Russians to resoluteness the existent unacceptable and wrongful detentions of American citizens."

"In the consequent weeks, contempt a deficiency of bully religion dialog by the Russians, the U.S. Government has continued to travel up connected that connection and suggest alternate imaginable ways guardant with the Russians done each disposable channels," she said.