Brittney Griner’s pre-trial detention in Russia has been extended until July 2.
According to TASS (via Mark Osborne and Deena Zaru of ABC News), a Russian court extended the detention at the “request of the investigation.”
Griner was arrested in February at Sheremetyevo International Airport near Moscow for reportedly possessing vape cartridges that included hashish oil, which is illegal in many countries.
She had been detained for 117 days as of Tuesday, and the US government had classified Griner as “wrongfully detained” last month, according to ESPN’s T.J. Quinn.
By labeling Griner as wrongfully detained, the US government was able to shift its emphasis to attempting to bring Griner home as quickly as possible instead of letting the legal process to play out.
Quinn noted that former US ambassador to the United Nations Bill Richardson, who has years of experience negotiating with international hostages, promised to work on Griner’s case.
Despite the US government’s change of heart and reports of a possible prisoner exchange with Russia, Griner remains imprisoned.
