New photos reveal the grim conditions WNBA player Brittney Griner faced for 10 months while incarcerated in a women’s prison in Russia.
The images were released by Russian News Agency TASS and showcase the tiny bed the 6’9” basketball star slept in along with the bland-looking meals she ate while in Women’s Penal Colony No 2 in Mordovia, Russia.
Griner was released after being locked up in February on Thursday, exchanged for notorious international arms dealer Viktor Bout, President Biden announced. She was arrested after Moscow airport authorities found vape cartridges containing cannabis oil, a substance that is banned in Russia, in her luggage.
Griner is seen wearing green prisoner clothes in most of the images; however, her hair is among the most striking characteristic of her appearance, chopped down from the signature dreads.
It is unclear if Griner was forced to cut her hair by prison guards or if she cut her hair of her own accord, but other prisoners can be seen in the background with long hair tied back in buns. However, the player is instantly recognizable, towering over other prisoners and cafeteria workers.
In another photograph, Griner can be seen making her twin bed in a communal bedroom, bending over almost completely to pull the bedsheets and blankets in order to make the bed. An ID with her photograph can be seen hanging from the miniscule bed.
Another image captures Griner being put to work in the prison, though it is not clear what task she was assigned during her incarceration. This photograph is the only one where Griner cannot be seen in a green prison jumpsuit, wearing a blue work suit and white bandana.
The following picture were provided by Fsb/TASS via ZUMA Press:
Griner was able to leave for home after signing various forms of paperwork and traveling to an airfield by bus. She was exchanged for Bout, often referred to as the “Merchant of Death,” who was convicted in 2011 of conspiracy to kill Americans by supplying a Columbian terrorist group with weapons.
Griner is returning to her 3,000-square-foot property in Arizona where she will be reunited with her wife and biggest advocate Charelle Griner.
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