Brittney Griner Case: Dennis Rodman Backs Out of Mission to Bring Detained WNBA Star Back on U.S. Soil

Dennis Rodman has decided not to get involved with the case of WNBA star Brittney Griner in Russia after the U.S. government strongly advised against his plans.

According to TMZ, the NBA Hall of Famer decided not to travel to Russia after the White House made it clear that he would not have the administration's blessing.

Rodman said earlier this week that he will travel to Russia to negotiate Griner's release to get her back to the U.S. He claimed that he knew Russia's President Vladimir Putin "too well."

Dennis Rodman is known to be well-connected to several powerful and influential people overseas, including North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

An anonymous senior official in President Joe Biden's administration told Reuters that the White House was not supportive of Rodman's plan and believed it could mess up the U.S.' current negotiations with Russia to get Brittney Griner out.

"It is public information that the administration has made a significant offer to the Russians and anything other than negotiating further through the established channel is likely to complicate and hinder release efforts," the official noted.

State Department spokesperson Ned Price also said that if Dennis Rodman pursued his plan, he "would not be traveling on behalf of the U.S. government." So ultimately, the former NBA star decided to take a back seat.

Russia Confirms Brittney Griner Swap Talks With U.S.

Two weeks ago, Russia confirmed that it was carrying out prisoner swap negotiations with the U.S. that could bring Brittney Griner home. Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Ivan Nechayev confirmed that prisoner swap talks between the two countries are taking place.

Nechayev told the Washington Post that instructions were already given "to authorized structures to carry out negotiations," and that "competent authorities" were conducting them.

The Biden administration previously proposed a deal to Russia to release Griner and another American prisoner, Paul Whelan, for infamous Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

In a news conference last month, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced the proposed deal. Blinken said he plans to discuss the prisoner swap with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov "in the coming days."

Blinken noted that he will be talking about the release of Whelan and Griner, who have been wrongfully detained and must be allowed to come home. The state secretary said the U.S. would like a response from Russia that has expressed interest in releasing Bout.

Bout was sentenced to 25 years in prison in the U.S. in 2012 on charges of conspiracy to kill U.S. citizens and providing aid to a terrorist organization.

Whelan, a corporate security executive from Michigan, was arrested in Russia in 2018 and was sentenced in 2020 to 16 years in prison on espionage charges.

Brittney Griner Case in Russia

Brittney Griner has been held in Russia since February for drug charges. Authorities in Russia claimed she had cannabis oil in her luggage.

The WNBA star had pleaded guilty to the charge, acknowledging in court that she had vape cartridges with cannabis oil in her luggage when she arrived in Moscow to play basketball in Russia.

However, she said she had no criminal intent and had accidentally packed the cartridges. Griner added that she had a doctor's recommendation for it and had packed it up in a hurry.

The WNBA star was sentenced earlier this month after being convicted of drug possession and smuggling. If the deal between Russia and the U.S. will not push through, Brittney Griner will spend nine years in a Russian prison.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Joshua Summers

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