WNBA Star Brittney Griner Has Reportedly Been Held in Russian Custody for Weeks

In the midst of the war on Ukraine, WNBA star and Olympian Brittney Griner has reportedly been detained in Russia since February, with little information available regarding her exact whereabouts.

The Russian Federal Customs Service made the news public via a video posted on Saturday, announcing that it had detained “a U.S. citizen” after a security dog allegedly detected the “possible presence of narcotic substances” in her luggage at an airport near Moscow, according to a statement cited by CNN. The “narcotic substance” in question was reportedly vape cartridges containing hashish oil, a derivative of marijuana, per the New York Times. However, the Customs Service did not publicize Griner’s name; she was first identified by the Russian news agency Tass.

According to the New York Times, the Customs Service has opened up a criminal case into the “large-scale transportation of drugs,” which carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years in Russia. The Times notes that Russia has been accused of leveraging “trumped-up charges” against Americans in recent years, which could partially explain why Griner is being investigated for “large-scale transportation of drugs” while carrying an amount that is likely intended strictly for personal use.

Griner’s sexuality could also possibly play a role in her detention. Russia is notoriously homophobic, with its government standing idly by during the 2019 “gay purge” in Chechnya, in which hundreds of queer people (and those perceived as queer) were reportedly forcibly disappeared and tortured by the Chechen government. The country has also banned so-called “gay propaganda” since 2013, which bars minors from viewing anything related to LGBTQ+ people, and officially banned gay marriage last year.

Griner’s wife, Cherelle T. Griner, thanked concerned fans in an Instagram post on Sunday.

“Your prayers and support are greatly appreciated,” Griner wrote. “I love my wife wholeheartedly, so this message comes during one of the weakest moments of my life.”

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Griner added that while she understood that her wife’s fans who “have grown to love BG over the years” would “have concerns and want details,” she also wanted privacy while continuing to work on getting her home safely.

As of Thursday afternoon, a Change.org petition calling for Griner’s return to the U.S. had garnered over 49,000 signatures.

Griner’s agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, added that her team is unable to comment on the specifics of the ongoing case, but could “confirm that as we work to get her home, her mental and physical health remain our primary concern,” per the New York Times.

Griner, like many other WNBA players, was in Russia playing during the U.S. offseason to make more money. According to Her Hoop Stats, Griner is set to make $227,900 this coming season with her home team, the Phoenix Mercury. Even that amount is far above the average earnings of a WNBA player, which is less than $130,000, per a 2020 union agreement. While that’s a sizable amount for the average person, it’s pocket change compared to NBA salaries; according to one source, the average salary for the 2022 season is projected to be $8.25 million, with the highest paid earner, Steph Curry, taking home a cool $45.8 million. The top salary for WNBA players, meanwhile, was only increased to $500,000 in 2020 per the union agreement.

This article originally appeared on them.

Source: SELF