Viktor Bout, a Russian arms dealer who is also known as the “Merchant of Death,” will be released in exchange for the WNBA’s Brittney Griner.

Griner has been in a Russian prison since her arrest for illegal substances while in Russia got her handed a 9-year prison sentence just over 210 miles from Moscow.

Bout was serving a 25-year-long prison sentence following his capture in Thailand in a Drug Enforcement Administration sting operation that spanned three continents in 2008. He would eventually be convicted of conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens and officials, delivery of anti-aircraft missiles, and providing aid to a terrorist organization in 2011.
Griner had been in prison for nearly 10 months, and word of Griner being forced to work hard labor jobs while in Russian prison.

Griner has had an exceptional basketball career, and has solidified her position as one of the exceptional female basketball players of all time, as she’s one of only eleven women to receive an Olympic gold medal, an NCAA championship, a FIBA World Cup gold medal, and a WNBA championship.

(Visited 1,249 times, 1 visits today)