US basketball player Brittney Greiner, who has been in a Russian pre-trial detention center since February on charges of drug smuggling, has pleaded guilty in full. It is reported by RIA Novosti.
“Ms. Greiner says she pleads guilty. She did not have the intent to carry luggage with drugs, there was no intent to commit a crime, as she was going in a hurry, ”the interpreter said in court.
The court also interrogated two more witnesses for the prosecution, who acted as witnesses during Greiner's personal search.
In February, a basketball player who arrived from New York was detained at Sheremetyevo Airport. During the inspection of hand luggage, vapes with a liquid with a specific smell were found in her. The examination found that there was hash oil inside. The UK opened a criminal case on drug smuggling, which provides for up to ten years in prison.
Greiner is one of the most decorated basketball players in the world. She was a two-time Olympian and two-time world champion with Team USA, and a WNBA champion with Phoenix in 2014. The center is included in the official list of the 25 best players in the women's NBA. He has been playing for the Yekaterinburg UMMC since 2015.
From a pre-trial detention center near Moscow, the basketball player wrote a letter to US President Joe Biden asking him to "do everything possible" for her release.
“Sitting here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts, without the protection of a wife, family, friends, an Olympic uniform, without any achievements, I am afraid that I can stay here forever,” she wrote in a letter, excerpts from which were shared its representatives.
Biden responded to Greiner's letter and has already prepared a written response, CNN reported .
The president called Greiner Scherel's wife to reassure her that he was working to get Brittney, as well as other US citizens, released as soon as possible, and offered full support to the detainee's family while his administration "uses every opportunity to bring Brittney home."
Brittney Greiner could be exchanged for Russian businessman Viktor Bout, who is serving a 25-year sentence in America on charges of illegal arms trafficking.