U.S. basketball star Griner says bringing cannabis into Russia was 'an honest mistake'

U.S. basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, walks after the final statements in a court hearing in Khimki outside Moscow, Russia August 4, 2022. REUTERS/Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool

U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner said that bringing cannabis into Russia was "an honest mistake" after a Moscow court found her guilty of drugs charges.

Griner, who pleaded guilty to the charges, said that she did not intend to break the law, and that her parents had taught her to take ownership of her responsibilities.

Earlier, a Russian prosecutor requested 9.5 years in prison for Griner after the court concluded that she was guilty of bringing cannabis-infused vape cartridges into Russia.

(Reporting by Reuters; editing by Guy Faulconbridge)