Against Arms Dealer Bout
Basketball player Griner is apparently to be replaced
05/14/2022, 08:50 am
US basketball star Griner has been in Russian custody since February. As a trial for alleged drug smuggling draws closer, a solution is being worked on behind the scenes. Allegedly, an exchange with a well-known arms dealer is being prepared.
US basketball player Brittney Griner, who has been in Russian custody since February, may be exchanged for arms dealer Victor Bout. That reports the Russian state news agency TASS citing unnamed government officials. Corresponding talks are already underway.
Bout, popularly known as the “dealer of death,” was arrested in Thailand in 2008 and extradited to the United States. There he was sentenced to 25 years in prison in April 2012. A court in New York ruled that he intended to smuggle weapons to rebels in Colombia to use against US citizens.
Griner has been in Russian custody since February after Moscow airport officials allegedly found cannabis oil in her luggage. The 31-year-old was detained as she attempted to return to the United States after a game in Russia. Her pre-trial detention has just been extended by another month. She faces up to ten years in prison if convicted.
Political bargaining chip
The arrest of the two-time Olympic champion and openly lesbian woman only became public knowledge after two weeks, on March 5. In the meantime, Russia had begun its military operation in Ukraine. As a result, the USA and other Western countries imposed extensive sanctions on Moscow and initiated military support for Kyiv.
US officials have repeatedly said she was wrongly detained and should be released. According to the US State Department, a consular officer attended the recent hearing in the town of Khimki, just outside Moscow, and was also able to speak with Griner. She is doing “as well as can be expected under extremely difficult circumstances”. Griner’s case is reportedly now being handled by a special branch of the State Department. The Office of the President’s Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs specializes in assisting in the release of Americans who are being held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad.
Similar negotiations had already led to an exchange in April. Trevor Reed, a US citizen and former Marine, has been released from prison in Russia, where he was serving a nine-year sentence for assault. In exchange, the US released Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, who had been sentenced to 20 years in prison for drug trafficking.