Brittney Griner Found Guilty of Drug Charges; Sentenced to 9 Years in Russian Prison

According to CNN, a Russian court found a Phoenix Mercury player guilty of drug possession.

Jennifer Hansler @jmhansler

MORE: The court said that Griner committed the crime deliberately. Although Griner pleaded guilty, she testified she did not intend to bring the small amount of cannabis into the country, and that it had been prescribed by a doctor.

She was sentenced to 9 years in prison. The prosecutors wanted a sentence of nine and a half years.

According to Ivan Nechepurenko of the New York Times, the verdict was called "absolutely unreasonable" by the defense team.

The president issued a statement as well.

"Today, American citizen Brittney Griner received a prison sentence that is one more reminder of what the world already knew: Russia is wrongfully detaining Brittney. It’s unacceptable, and I call on Russia to release her immediately so she can be with her wife, loved ones, friends, and teammates. My administration will continue to work tirelessly and pursue every possible avenue to bring Brittney and Paul Whelan home safely as soon as possible."

A joint statement was issued by the NBA and the WNBA.

The trials in Russia go on despite the guilty plea of Griner. It was reported at the time that the plea was a strategy to facilitate a prisoner swap that could bring her home.

The seven-time All-Star told the court that she made an honest mistake and hoped that she wouldn't die here.

She said that she had not intended to break any Russian laws. I had no intention. I didn't plan on committing this crime.

She was arrested at a Moscow airport in February after she was accused of having cannabis oil in her luggage. She was arrested in Russia for 168 days after the US State Department classified her as being wrongly held.

CNN reported on July 28 that the Biden administration was ready to swap convicted arms trafficker Viktor Bout for two other people. In Russia, he was sentenced to 16 years in prison for espionage.

According to CNN, Russian officials wanted to have convicted murderer Vadim Krasikov released from custody in Germany as part of the deal.

The press secretary said that the officials from the Biden administration wanted to see the two people. The administration believed Russia was negotiating in bad faith, Jean-Pierre said.

John Kirby said the same thing Tuesday.

He told reporters at a press briefing that they wouldn't negotiate in public. We made a serious proposal and made a serious offer. We encourage the Russians to take the offer because it was done with genuineness and we know we can back it up.