Brittney Griner thought imprisoned marine Paul Whelan would go with her when she left Russia in ‘controversial swap’ for arms dealer Viktor Bout, Robin Roberts reveals of upcoming ABC interview with WNBA star
Brittney Griner thought she would return to the United States with fellow Russian prisoner and U.S. Marine Paul Whelan when she was traded in a “controversial” prisoner swap for arms dealer Viktor Bout in 2022, ABC’s Robin Roberts revealed Tuesday.
In giving a first look at the upcoming GMA interview, Roberts told her co-hosts that the WNBA star is indeed addressing the trade that freed her from 10 months in captivity in Russia following her drug arrest in Moscow in February 2022.
“She said she got on a plane and thought Paul Whelan was going to be on that plane too,” Roberts told her co-hosts, discussing Grinner’s organization aimed at helping other imprisoned Americans abroad. “It’s called ‘Bringing Our Families Home’ to help in the effort to free other prisoners.”
The interview will air May 1 as Griner prepares for her second WNBA season since her release. The 6-foot-1, 33-year-old center returned to the league last year, earning her ninth All-Star nod for the Phoenix Mercury. She and her partner Cherelle recently revealed they are now expecting a baby, 16 months after she was traded for Bout in a 1-for-1 deal at an Abu Dhabi airport.
Griner had been sentenced to nine years in prison after being caught with a cannabis oil cartridge when she returned to Russia to continue playing for her European team, UMMC Ekaterinburg. And as she told Roberts, Grinner’s first thought when he was arrested amid the growing Ukrainian-Russian conflict was, “My life is over here.”
Brittney Griner is seen crying during an emotional interview with ABC’s Robin Roberts
The 6-foot-2 Griner is seen with her legs stretched out for ABC’s Robin Roberts
Whelan, a former Marine accused of espionage, listens to the verdict in a courtroom in 2020
“I was just so scared,” she told Roberts. “There was so much I didn’t know.”
Griner was eventually sent to the city of Yavas in Mordovia, a region known for its prison camps.
Hers turned out to be “one of the worst,” Roberts said.
Griner described seeing a “big knife” on a table in the prison camp and thinking, “I thought, no, this is going to be a ride. Do what you have to do to survive.”
The conditions, she said, were “less than human.”
Menstrual stains on mattresses and no soap or toilet paper were just some of the indignities she faced.
That all came to an end in December 2022, when she was released in a 1-for-1 swap that has since been criticized for its failure to return Whelan, a U.S. Marine who was jailed on espionage charges in 2018.
Griner and Bout crossed paths on a tarmac in the United Arab Emirates to complete the trade. Bout, dubbed the ‘Merchant of Death’ by some, was arrested on terrorism charges in 2008 and later convicted in the US.
Bout, dubbed by some as the ‘Merchant of Death’, was arrested in 2008 on terrorism charges
Brittney Griner is seen crossing the tarmac in Abu Dhabi after being traded for Viktor Bout
The deal drew criticism from Republicans, who were angry that the White House also failed to get Whelan. In response to attacks from the right, White House officials acknowledged that prisoner swaps are costly, adding that they felt compelled to bring Griner home while they had the chance.
With her new book, Griner hopes to raise awareness among other Americans imprisoned abroad, including Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who was arrested in 2023 for alleged espionage, and Whelan.
Whelan’s brother said in 2022 that he fears his brother will never be returned, though he emphasized that he supported the Biden administration’s deal to bring Griner home.
“I think we all realize that unless the US government can make concessions, Paul won’t be able to come home anytime soon,” said David Whelan. “And so I think we’re not really sure what the path forward is.”