American basketball player Brittney Griner, accused in Russia of possession and smuggling of drugs, pleaded guilty Thursday before a court of Moscow.
The athlete, who used a translator during the Khimki Court session, admitted all the charges. However, she pointed out that did not intend to commit a crimeaccording to the Interfax agency.
Griner explained the presence of cannabis oil in your luggage with the haste with which he packed his bags to travel to Russia.
The next hearing of the trial, in which the sentence is expected, will be held July 14.
In Thursday’s session, the court took statements from two prosecution witnesses. Both participated in the registration of player’s belongings at Russian customs.
The 31-year-old athlete double world champion and Olympian with her country, was arrested in February at the Sheremétevo airport in Moscow. Customs officials found cannabis oil among her belongings.
Subsequently, Brittney Griner was arrested for drug possession and smuggling and has been in jail ever since. preventive prison.
Previously, it was learned that Russia and the United States are negotiating the exchange of the player for the Russian arms dealer Victor Butknown as the “merchant of death” and serving a sentence in an American prison.
But is serving 25 years in prison, among other things, for conspiring to kill american citizens and sell weapons to the former FARC guerrilla organization.
Recently, Russia and the United States exchanged the American student Trevor Reed, sentenced to nine years in prison for resisting authority, by the Russian pilot Konstantin Yaroshenko, sentenced to 20 years for drug smuggling.
