WNBA star Brittney Griner has been released from a Russian penal colony and is in United States custody after a prisoner exchange for arms dealer Viktor Bout, President Biden confirmed.
RELATED: Life inside the Russian penal colony where Brittney Griner is serving nine years https://bit.ly/3VF0lsw
In a news conference at the White House, Biden said the exchange had been in the works for the past two weeks, and he had given the final go-ahead for the swap. Biden spoke with Griner on the phone, and Griner’s wife, Cherelle Griner, was at the White House on Thursday. The swap took place in the United Arab Emirates.
Biden said that the “past few months have been hell for Brittney” but that she is in good spirits.
“We never forgot about Brittney,” Biden said. “I’m glad to be able to say Brittney is in good spirits. She’s relieved to finally be heading home, and the fact remains that she’s lost months of her life, experienced a needless trauma. She deserves space, privacy and time with her loved ones to recover and heal from her time being wrongfully detained.
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