FILE – Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner (42) appears to pass as Chicago Sky center Candace Parker in the first half of Game 1 of the WNBA Basketball Finals, Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021, in Phoenix.
AP Photo/Ralph Freso, file
A Moscow court has extended the arrest of WNBA star Brittney Griner until May 19, according to Russian state news agency Tass.
Griner was arrested at a Moscow airport in February after Russian authorities said a search of her luggage found vape cartridges. They were found to contain cannabis-derived oil, which carried a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.
“The court granted the investigation request and extended the detention of US citizen Griner until May 19,” the court said, according to Tass.
The US Embassy in Moscow did not immediately respond to calls from The Associated Press for comment.
One of women’s basketball’s most recognizable figures, 31-year-old Griner has won two Olympic gold medals with USA, a WNBA championship with Phoenix Mercury and a national championship at Baylor. She is a seven-time All-Star.
The WNBA season begins May 6th.
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Griner has played winter games in Russia for the past seven years, earning over $1 million per season — more than four times her WNBA salary. She last played for her Russian team UMMC Ekaterinburg on Jan. 29 before the league went on a two-week hiatus in early February for the FIBA World Cup qualifying tournaments. She was arrested in Moscow when she returned to Russia.
Photos: The latest scenes from the Russia-Ukraine war
People attend a funeral ceremony for Ukrainian servicemen Roman Rak and Mykola Mykytiuk in Starychi, western Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. Rak and Mykytiu were killed during Sunday’s Russian missile attack on a military training ground in Yavoriv. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Bernat Armangue
A bird flies in front of an “I love Ukraine” sign in downtown Kyiv, Ukraine, Wednesday March 16, 2022 amid a curfew. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Vadim Ghirda
A Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces volunteer helps a woman cross the street in Kharkiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Marienko)
Andreas Marienko
A volunteer of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces smokes on Wednesday, March 16, 2022 in Kharkiv, Ukraine. (AP Photo/Andrew Marienko)
Andreas Marienko
A soldier drinks tea during a break at a military checkpoint in Lityn, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Rodrigo Abd
A child’s drawing is hung next to a first aid bag at a military checkpoint in Lityn, Ukraine, on Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Rodrigo Abd
Damaged vehicles stand among rubble and in downtown Kharkiv, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Pavel Dorogoy)
Pavel Dorogoy
A soldier hugs a relative fleeing the war minutes before leaving by bus for Poland on Wednesday, March 16, 2022, in Vinnytsia, Ukraine. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Rodrigo Abd
An elderly woman cries during the funeral procession of Ukrainian servicemen Roman Rak and Mykola Mykytiuk in Starychi, western Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. Rak and Mykytiu were killed during Sunday’s Russian missile attack on a military training area in Yavoriv. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Bernat Armangue
A damaged military vehicle stands in Kharkiv, Ukraine on Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Andrew Marienko)
Andreas Marienko
A man jokes as he reacts to the camera while digging a trench with soldiers and neighbors, in Lityn, Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Rodrigo Abd
Ukrainian military personnel prepare to fire a gun salute during the funeral of their comrades Roman Rak and Mykola Mykytiuk in Starychi, western Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. Rak and Mykytiu were killed during Sunday ‘s Russian missile attack on a military training ground in Yavoriv . (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Bernat Armangue
Flowers are laid around the graves of Ukrainian servicemen Roman Rak and Mykola Mykytiuk in Starychi, western Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. Rak and Mykytiu were killed during Sunday’s Russian missile attack on a military training ground in Yavoriv. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Bernat Armangue
A group of people fleeing Ukraine arrive at the border crossing in Medyka, Poland on Wednesday March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Petros Giannakouris
People attend a funeral ceremony for Ukrainian servicemen Roman Rak and Mykola Mykytiuk in Starychi, western Ukraine, Wednesday, March 16, 2022. Rak and Mykytiu were killed during Sunday’s Russian missile attack on a military training ground in Yavoriv. (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue)
Bernat Armangue
An ambulance drives into downtown Kyiv, Ukraine, on Thursday, March 17, 2022, as a 35-hour curfew in the Ukrainian capital comes to an end. Russian forces on Wednesday demolished a theater in Mariupol where hundreds of people were taking shelter and rained fire on other cities, Ukrainian authorities said, although both sides expressed optimism about efforts to negotiate an end to the fighting. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Vadim Ghirda
German pianist of Italian descent Davide Martello, plays the piano for people who fled the war from Ukraine, background, at the border crossing in Medyka, Poland, on Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)
Petros Giannakouris
A Ukrainian soldier looks through binoculars at a military checkpoint in Lityn, Ukraine on Wednesday, March 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
Rodrigo Abd