Roy Jones Jr., Dual Citizen of Russia & US, Takes Big Step to Free Brittney Griner: “…Willing to Do a Prisoner Exchange”
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Legendary boxer, Roy Jones Jr. has proposed a potential prisoner exchange between Russia and the United States to free WNBA superstar Brittney Griner. The 53-year-old boxing legend holds dual citizenship in both America and Russia. Therefore, he has been using his connections in Moscow to try to free Brittney Griner, who has been detained in Russia for drug possession for about four months now.
Russian authorities arrested Brittney Griner for possession of restricted substances in February of this year. Meanwhile, things started to complicate after Russia’s offensive in Ukraine in late February. In fact, Griner’s release became a diplomatic issue for both America and Russia.
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Roy Jones Jr. proposes prisoner exchange to free Brittney Griner
Former world champion boxer Roy Jones Jr. has proposed a supposed prisoner exchange between the two countries to bring home Brittney Griner. The former four-division champion became a Russian citizen a few years ago.
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As it turns out, Jones Jr. pulled some strings in Moscow to try to facilitate Griner’s release. In response, his connections in Moscow told him that the Russian authorities could agree to a potential prisoner exchange.
“My friend called and he called me back and he said, ‘yes, they said they’d be willing to do a prisoner exchange’,” he revealed in an interview. However, the former undisputed light-heavyweight champion expressed concerns over the release of an actual criminal from US prison.
Roy Jones Jr., a dual U.S. and Russian citizen, tells TMZ Sports he's actively working on getting WNBA star Brittney Griner freed from a Russian jail, and is even willing to travel to Moscow to assist. https://t.co/CrnrhvSYCj
— TMZ Sports (@TMZ_Sports) June 17, 2022
Nevertheless, Roy seemed determined to free Brittney from prison. In fact, he declared that he was willing to go to Russia himself to negotiate.
“Would I put my life on the line, take a chance to go to Russia to exchange prisoners? Yes, I would,” he said. “Because if [Brittney] was my daughter, I would want somebody to do the same thing for me.”
Griner’s trial in Russia
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Meanwhile, Brittney Griner is undergoing trial in Russia. She has pleaded guilty to the charges of drug possession against her.
In fact, she could face up to 10 years in prison for her actions. Former New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson will be traveling to Moscow soon to negotiate her release.
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What do you think of a prisoner exchange proposal to free Brittney? Comment your thoughts below.
Written by:
Edited by:
Pritam Priyedarshi