- Brittney Griner continues to be detained in Russia after being accused of attempting to smuggle drugs through an airport in Moscow.
- Boxing legend Roy Jones Jr., who has Russian citizenship, is attempting to help to free Griner.
- Jones claimed he’s talking to someone close to Putin about Griner’s release and is willing to go to Russia himself to bring the WNBA star back home.
Former boxing champ Roy Jones Jr. says he has a plan to bring back Brittney Griner, who has been held in a Russian jail for months after she was accused by authorities of attempting to smuggle vape cartridges with cannabis oil through a Moscow airport.
Jones Jr., a dual citizen of the U.S. and Russia, claims he has been talking to a friend who he describes as “a right-hand man to the office of” Russian President Vladimir Putin about getting Griner released.
“I had a friend, a couple of my friends that I knew, I called and I asked him ‘Is there any way we can try to facilitate?’ because I don’t do politics. I’m a sports figure and they love me as a sports figure. ‘Is there any way we can use my sports influence to possibly can get anything arranged to help get Brittney home?’”
“One of my guys is like — he’s the right-hand man to the office of Mr. Putin, so he’s high up on the political scheme. He’s a reporter and he usually does most of the reporting for Mr. Putin so he can go make direct contact with whoever necessary to help me.”
Jones says he may consider going to Russia himself to bring Griner back home.
“Would I put my life on the line, take a chance to go to Russia to exchange prisoners? Yes, I would,” “Why? Because if it was my daughter, I would want somebody to do the same thing for me.”