A court in Moscow began the trial of U.S. women’s basketball player Brittney Griner on drug smuggling charges Friday, the latest in a series of cases involving Americans held by Russian authorities amid deteriorating relations.
Griner, 31, a two-time Olympic Gold medalist, faces a maximum of 10 years in prison if convicted. She was detained in Moscow in February after police accused her of illegally trying to import hash oil into the country in vape cartridges.
She declined to respond to the charges at the hearing, according to the state-run Tass news service. Griner’s wife, Cherelle, called her “a political pawn” and urged President Joe Biden to secure her release, the Associated Press reported.
