Brittney Griner says she thought about suicide during her first weeks in a Russian prison – Andscape

PHOENIX – WNBA star Brittney Griner said she contemplated suicide during the first few weeks of her stay in a Russian prison following her 2022 arrest on drug charges.

Griner spoke for the first time about her month-long detention in Russia during an hour-long interview that aired Wednesday night on ABC. Her diary might be released on May 7.

Griner was detained upon arrival at a Moscow airport after Russian authorities said a search of her luggage revealed vaping cartridges allegedly containing oil derived from cannabis.

“I wanted to take my own life more than once in the first few weeks,” Griner told Robin Roberts in an interview. “I wanted to leave here so bad.”

She decided to accomplish that partly because she feared that Russian authorities wouldn’t release her body to her family.

Her difficult situation unfolded concurrently Russia invaded Ukraine and further escalated tensions between Russia and the United States, which ended only after her release in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Griner said she was forced to write down a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin before being released.

“They forced me to write down this letter. It was in Russian,” she added. “I needed to make an apology and thanks from their so-called great leader. I didn’t need to do it, but at the identical time I desired to go home.

She was upset when she boarded the industrial plane and that Paul Whelan, one other American held in Russia, was not with her.

“I kept walking and didn’t see him, possibly he’ll be next. Maybe they’ll bring him in next,” she said. “They closed the door and I thought: Are you serious? You won’t let this man come home now.

Griner plays for the Phoenix Mercury. The WNBA season starts on May 14.