American basketball player Brittney Griner, who was exchanged for arms trafficker Viktor Bout in December 2022, has given a series of interviews in which she spoke about the conditions in which she was held in a Russian prison.
Two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport on February 17, 2022, a week before the war began.
During a baggage check, Greiner was found in possession of a vape containing cannabis oil, which she had been medically prescribed for chronic pain. Brittney was criminally prosecuted for drug smuggling. In August 2022, the basketball player was sentenced to 9 years in prison.
In an interview with The New York Times, Griner said she had suicidal thoughts in prison. To relieve stress, she smoked up to a pack of cigarettes a day and read the Bible.
The athlete said she was forced to work 12 to 15 hours cutting large pieces of fabric used to sew Russian military uniforms.
"I've never been so dirty in my life," Brittney said, complaining about the horrible conditions at the beginning of her detention. She had no chance to shower and tore her T-shirt into several pieces to brush her teeth and use instead of toilet paper.
Since her detention, the case has been discussed in the context of a possible exchange. In December 2022, Greiner learned from the U.S. Embassy that the exchange would take place in the coming days.
Just before she was sent back, the American was taken to an office with a man who identified himself as a doctor and seven other armed guards. According to Griner, she was ordered to undress completely and then began to be photographed.
Greiner was then taken to an airplane without telling her where she was going. The plane landed in Abu Dhabi. When she stepped on the runway, she saw a man- it was Victor Booth. As he passed Greiner, Booth extended his hand to her; the American woman "instinctively shook it." According to her, his hands were soft compared to her calloused ones. She boarded the plane on which Booth had arrived and flew to her hometown of San Antonio.
