WNBA All Star Details Grueling Conditions in Russian Prison Camp

WNBA All Star Brittney Griner awaiting sentencing in Russia

On July 7th, 2022 WNBA star Brittney Griner caught the attention of the nation and the rest of the free world when she pled guilty to drummed up Russian drug charges. Griner was visiting the country playing basketball overseas when she forgot to remove two cannabis oil cartridges from her bag. When Russian agents demanded to search her bags at the airport, all hell broke loose. The fateful mistake would change her life forever.  

"Oh, my God. How did I - how did I make this mistake? I could just visualize everything I worked so hard for just crumbling and going away." 

Griner was immediately imprisoned where she waited several months, as the Russian government purposefully delayed her trial. Griner testified that she had no intention of breaking Russian law and the whole thing was just "one big accident." It was to no avail, however, as the Kremlin was eager to imprison a well-known American basketball star to later use as a bargaining chip. 

Officially classified as "wrongfully detained" by the United States government, the WNBA star didn't have it easy in Russian prison. There were times she had no toilet paper and the toothpaste she was given was 15 years past its expiration date. Griner details her harrowing experience sleeping on a bloody mattress and more, 

"The toothpaste was expired. We used to put it on the black mold to kill the mold on the walls. The mattress had a huge blood stain on it, and they give you these two thin sheets, so you're basically lying on bars."

For what Griner called a "mental lapse," she was sentenced to 9 years in Russian prison on August 4th, 2022. Her attorneys appealed the case in October, but that appeal was denied. Griner was swiftly moved to a Russian prison camp where she was forced to cut fabric to be used in making Russian military uniforms. Griner reveals the torturous conditions of the camp where she was treated like a slave, 

"[It was] really cold. It's a work camp. You go there to work.....there's no rest." 

The temperatures were so frigid that Griner's health drastically declined, and she was forced to cut off her trademark dreadlocks, 

"Honestly, it just had to happen. We had spiders above my bed making nests. My dreads started to freeze. They would just stay wet and cold, and I was getting sick. You've got to do what you've got to do to survive."

Griner's unjust imprisonment set off a movement here in the United States to pressure President Biden into negotiating for her release. That happened on December 8th, 2022 when the United States and Russia agreed to a prisoner exchange: Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout for Griner. The move was criticized by some, but Griner would be freed from the hell she was enduring and returned safely home to her wife Cherelle. Griner was, of course, thrilled to be home, but "disappointed" she wouldn't be accompanied by Paul Whelan, another American who has been wrongfully convicted in Russia. Whelan, who was arrested while attending a friend's wedding in Russia, was sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison for "espionage." 

Since her release, Griner has returned to the WNBA to do what she loves: play basketball. She has also dedicated her life to advocating for the release of Americans falsely imprisoned abroad. Griner is passionate about her new life's work, 

"President Biden, you brought me home and I know you are committed to bringing Paul Whelan and all Americans home, too. I will do whatever I can to help you. I also encourage everyone that played a part in bringing me home to continue their efforts to bring all Americans home. Every family deserves to be whole."

There are at least nine Americans wrongfully detained in Russia including American journalist Evan Gershkovich. The 32-year-old journalist was arrested in March 2023 and like Paul Whelan before him, falsely accused of espionage. He has been sentenced to 16 years in a Russian prison. Along with Gershkovich and Paul Whelan are fellow falsely detained and wrongfully accused Americans; Michael Travis Leake, Robert Romanov Woodland, Marc Fogel, Gordon Black, Robert Gilman, Eugene Spector, and David Barnes. Griner continues to do all she can to advocate for their release from the Russian hell she once endured. 

FURTHER READING: Russia to Begin Kidnapping Ukrainian Newborns