WNBA star Brittney Griner has been free of Russia in a prisoner swap for infamous arms vendor Viktor Bout, whereas American Paul Whelan stays behind bars after being unnoticed of the deal.
Griner, who was sentenced to 9 years in Russian jail, was flying house on Thursday following the prisoner alternate, President Biden introduced from the White House.
“I spoke with Brittney Griner,” Biden stated. “She’s safe. She’s on a plane. She’s on her way home.”
“After months of being unjustly detained in Russia, held under intolerable circumstances, Brittney will soon be back in the arms of her loved ones,” the president added. “And she should have been there all along.”
The two-time Olympic gold medalist, who additionally performed skilled basketball in Russia, was arrested at a Moscow airport in February when police accused her of getting vape canisters with hashish oil. After the Russian trial, she was despatched to a penal colony.
“Thank you to @POTUS, the advocates & every person who fought to free Brittney Griner,” Massachusetts Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley tweeted. “An unjustly imprisoned WNBA athlete and Black queer woman is finally returning to her wife, her family, and her teammates. Welcome home.”
Over the summer season, Griner wrote a letter to Biden, urging the president to not neglect about her and the opposite American detainees like Whelan — a Michigan company safety govt jailed in Russia on espionage prices that his household and the U.S. authorities have stated are baseless. He was sentenced in 2020 to 16 years in jail.
“We never forgot about Brittney,” Biden stated. “We’ve not forgotten about Paul Whelan, who’s been unjustly detained in Russia for years.”
“Sadly, for totally illegitimate reasons, Russia is treating Paul’s case differently than Brittney’s,” the president added. “And while we have not yet succeeded in securing Paul’s release, we are not giving up. We will never give up.”
Brittney’s spouse Cherelle stated she had “sincere gratitude” for Biden and his administration.
“Today my family is whole, but as you all are aware, there’s so many other families who are not whole,” Cherelle stated.
The Griners “will remain committed to the work of getting every American home, including Paul, whose family is in our hearts today as we celebrate BG being home,” Cherelle stated.
Whelan’s brother David stated he was “so glad” that Brittney was heading house.
“The Biden Administration made the right decision to bring Ms. Griner home, and to make the deal that was possible, rather than waiting for one that wasn’t going to happen,” David stated in a press release.
“I can’t imagine he (Paul) retains any hope that a government will negotiate his freedom at this point,” he later added. “It’s clear that the US government has no concessions that the Russian government will take for Paul Whelan.”
Massachusetts Congressman Bill Keating stated he has been in contact with the Whelan household.
“While we are very happy that Brittany Griner is returning home, we cannot forget we still have Americans unlawfully detained in Russia — specifically Paul Whelan,” Keating tweeted. “I have been in touch with his family, and they and Paul deserve all of our country’s efforts to bring him home.”
Bout, the Russian felon as soon as nicknamed “the Merchant of Death,” is a former Soviet Army lieutenant colonel whom the Justice Department as soon as described as one of many world’s most prolific arms sellers.
He was serving a 25-year sentence on prices that he conspired to promote tens of tens of millions of {dollars} in weapons that U.S. officers stated have been for use in opposition to Americans.
The deal drew criticism from some outstanding Republicans, together with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.
“This is a gift to Vladimir Putin, and it endangers American lives,” he stated of Bout’s launch. “Leaving Paul Whelan behind for this is unconscionable.”
What do you consider the prisoner swap? Visit bostonherald.com to vote on our ballot.
Herald wire providers have been used on this report.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”