Britney Griner apparently knew her fate in the Russian courts and called her final hearing “Doomsday,” her attorney said.


Britney Griner

WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Britney Griner stands in a cage in a Russian courtroom listening to her verdict.Pool photo via Evgenia Novozhenina/AP

  • Britney Griner’s attorney said she called Thursday’s sentencing hearing a “doomsday.”

  • “When I met Britney on Tuesday, we said to her, ‘See you Thursday.’ She said, ‘See you at the end.'” Maria Bragovolina told Reuters.

  • Griner “was right,” Blagovorina said, and she was sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison on drug smuggling charges.

Britney Griner appeared to know her fate in a Russian courtroom, calling Thursday’s hearing and ruling “the fateful day,” speaking with attorneys earlier in the week.

“When we met Britney on Tuesday, we said to her, ‘See you Thursday,'” said Griner’s attorney, Maria Bragovolina. told Reuters.

The WNBA superstar and two-time Olympic gold medalist replied, ‘Let’s meet the end,'” Blagovolina told Reuters.

Britney Griner

In Khimki, a suburb of Moscow, Russia, Griner is escorted from court after her last words.AP Photo/Alexander Zemlyanichenko

“So it looks like she was right,” the lawyer retorted, convicting and 9 years in prison It was handed to Greiner on Thursday.

Griner, who had been detained at a Moscow airport since February, was detained in Russia after authorities found e-cigarette cartridges containing hash oil in her luggage. Her trial, which began four months after her first arrest, ended Thursday, with a judge ruling that she had “criminal intent” in bringing cannabis into Russia.

Griner had previously pleaded guilty to the charges against her as part of her legal team ask for leniencyBut early Thursday, Prosecutors recommended Griner be sentenced to nine and a half years in prisonmarking a reduction of just six months from the maximum possible prison term.

Britney Griner.

Griner stands in the defendant’s cage during the trial.Reuters/Evgenia Novozhenina/Pool

President Biden Condemns Verdict, Calls on Russia to Release Griner Shortly after the 31-year-old was sentenced. “The administration will continue to work tirelessly and pursue all possible means to win the support of Britney and Venezuela,” Biden promised. [fellow detained American] Paul Whelan will return home safely as soon as possible,” the statement said, seemingly alluding to the possibility of a prisoner exchange that made headlines last week.

The White House seems to have confirmed it was Offered in exchange for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Boutin exchange for the early release of both Greiner and Whelan, former US Marines convicted on espionage charges.

Russia has yet to formally respond to the regime’s offer. US helps release additional prisoners — A Russian citizen tried, convicted and imprisoned for murder in Germany.

Britney Griner.

Greiner.AP Photo/Alexander Zemlyanichenko, pool

But senior White House officials lashed out at the rebuttal as “malicious attempts to avoid the very serious offers and proposals put forward by the United States.”Moscow officials fired back “Bullhorn Diplomacy” Will Not Succeed Bringing detained Americans home shows that America and Russia are still far from agreeing to a deal.

Still, all eyes are on Biden to secure freedom for Griner and Whelan. Especially now that the eight-time WNBA All-Star officially faces the prospect of spending nearly a decade in a penal colony.

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By Ana BanuelosPosted on