Brittney Griner's Lawyers Confirm WNBA Star Moved to Penal Colony
Lesbian basketball champion Brittney Griner has been sent to a Russian penal colony, according to her lawyers and agent.It comes a little over a week after her lawyers shared that her transfer from a detention center in Iksha to a penal colony had commenced.
She’s been sent to a camp in the Western part of the country called Mordovia, which is about a seven-hour drive by car from Moscow.“We can confirm that Brittney began serving her sentence at IK-2 in Mordovia,” Griner’s legal team said in a statement to The Advocate. “We visited her early this week.
Brittney is doing as well as could be expected and trying to stay strong as she adapts to a new environment. Considering that this is a very challenging period for her, there will be no further comments from us.”Related: What Life in a Russian Penal Colony Could Be Like for Brittney GrinerThe news of her being sent to the penal colony in Mordovia was also confirmed by her agent, Lindsay Colas.“Despite the fact she is alone and now nearing her ninth month in detention separated from her loved ones, she is trying to stay strong,” Colas said.Colas encouraged supporters to keep writing to Griner at www.wearebg.org.Griner, a lesbian who played center for the Phoenix Mercury and won two gold medals playing for the U.S.
National Team, was detained by the Federal Customs Service in February after vape cartridges with illegal hashish oil were found in her luggage.This summer, Griner pleaded guilty and was convicted on drug charges, and sentenced to nine years in prison.
