American women's basketball great Brittney Griner has been detained in Russia since last month after the two-time Olympic gold medal winner and seven time WNBA All-Star was arrested at a Moscow airport for allegedly having a vape pen filled with hash oil. Griner, 31, was detained sometime last month while flying in to play for a Russian basketball team during the WNBA offseason. Her last communication was on February 5 when she posted a photo to Instagram of her and her Phoenix Mercury teammates. Now Russia might use Griner as leverage as she faces up to 10 years in prison on the drug smuggling charge. 'If we want her out of jail, Russia is going to have some terms,' Former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Russia and Ukraine Evelyn Farkas told Yahoo Sports. 'It could be a prisoner swap. They also could use it as an implicit threat or blackmail to get us to do something or not do something. Either way, they find it useful.' In a statement to DailyMail.com on Saturday, Griner's agent Lindsay Kagawa Colas did not dispute reports of her client's detention. 'We are aware of the situation with Brittney Griner in Russia and are in close contact with her, her legal representation in Russia, her family, her teams, and the WNBA and NBA,' Colas said. 'As this is an ongoing legal matter, we are not able to comment further on the specifics of her case but can confirm that as we work to get her home, her mental and physical health remain our primary concern.'?
Fears Putin will use WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner, 31, as a 'high-profile hostage' after she was detained on arrival at Moscow airport three WEEKS ago with 'cannabis-filled vape pen': Faces 10 YEARS in jail
