A video released by Russian state media shows WNBA star Brittney Griner learning on a plane that she is flying home to the U.S. after being freed from a monthslong imprisonment in Russia.
In the video, an interview using a translator asks Griner what her mood is.
“Happy,” Griner replies.
“Do you know where are you heading to?” the interviewer asks.
“No,” Griner says. “I don’t know.”
“You’re flying back home,” the interviewer says.
“To the U.S?” Griner asks.
“To the U.S.,” the person replies. “Everything will be fine.”
President Joe Biden announced Thursday that Griner was safely on a plane home. The two-time Olympic gold medalist was freed in a prisoner swap for international arms dealer Viktor Bout.
A video released by Russian state media shows the prisoner exchange taking place on the tarmac at Al Bateen Executive Airport in Abu Dhabi.
The Phoenix Mercury star was detained in February at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport after police said they found vape canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage. Griner admitted she had the canisters, but said she had packed them by accident in her haste to make her flight and had no criminal intent. Her defense team presented evidence she was prescribed cannabis to treat chronic pain.
