Brittney Griner's Wife Tells 'CBS Mornings' She's Terrified, Feels WNBA Star Is A Hostage In Russia

In her first interview since her wife, WNBA superstar Brittney Griner was sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison for drug possession, Cherelle Griner told "CBS Mornings" co-host Gayle King that she is terrified. Griner is now in her 230th day in prison.

In the interview at her home in Phoenix, Cherelle said told King that she never imagined being in a situation like this...that it doesn't feel real.

"It's like a movie for me. I'm like, 'In no world did I ever thought, you know, our president and a foreign nation president would be sitting down having to discuss the freedom of my wife.' And so to me, as much as everybody's telling me a different definition of what B.G. is, it feels to me as if she's a hostage," Cherelle said. 
"That must scare you," King replied. 
"It terrifies me because, I mean, when you watch movies, like, sometimes those situations don't end well. Sometimes they never get the person back," said Cherelle.

Cherelle Griner says she is “terrified” about the fate of her wife, Brittney Griner, who was sentenced to nine years in Russian prison: “It feels to me as if she’s a hostage.”
Watch her exclusive interview with @GayleKing Thursday on #CBSMornings. pic.twitter.com/3tioXecuvm

— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) October 5, 2022

This week Griner's legal team got an appeal date for Oct. 25. Meanwhile, the U.S. government has confirmed that prisoner swap negotiations are underway with Russia to bring Griner home along with former Marine Paul Whelan in exchange for the notorious Russian gun-runner Viktor Bout.

President Biden met with Cherelle Griner and Paul Whelan's sister Elizabeth in early September. Biden said he was hopeful a deal could be made though since then, there have been few signs of progress from either side. 

Read more: Why Aren't Russian Billionaire Owners Of Brittney Griner's Basketball Team Helping Get Her Out Of Prison?

The eight-time All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist has been in a Russian prison since she was first detained at a Moscow airport on Feb. 17 for having cannabis oil in her suitcase. Griner, a medical marijuana patient in the U.S. had forgotten to remove the minuscule amount of cannabis oil before she traveled to Russia where she's played basketball with the country’s top women’s team for the past seven years.

Photo: Wikipedia