WNBA star Brittney Griner appears in Moscow-area court for trial on cannabis possession charges

MOSCOW — American basketball star Brittney Griner appeared in a Moscow-area court for trial Friday, about 4½ months after she was arrested on cannabis possession charges at an airport while traveling to play for a Russian team.

Griner was arrested in February at Moscow's Sheremetyevo Airport. Police said she was carrying vape canisters with cannabis oil. The Phoenix Mercury center and two-time U.S. Olympic gold medalist could face up to 10 years in prison if convicted of large-scale transportation of drugs.

Fewer than 1% of defendants in Russian criminal cases are acquitted, and unlike in the U.S., acquittals can be overturned.

At a closed-door preliminary hearing Monday in the Moscow suburb of Khimki, Griner's detention was extended for six months to Dec. 20.

Photos obtained by The Associated Press, including one of the few close-ups of Griner since her arrest on Feb. 17, showed the 31-year-old in handcuffs and looking straight ahead, unlike a previous court appearance where she kept her head down and covered with a hood.

She declined to answer questions from reporters in English as she was led through the courthouse, according to video shown in Russian media. Russian media later reported that Griner's lawyers would not comment on how their client planned to plead.

The athlete's detention and trial come at an extraordinarily low point in Moscow-Washington relations. Griner was arrested less than a week before Russia sent troops into Ukraine, which aggravated already high tensions between the two countries. The invasion led to sweeping sanctions imposed by the United States, and Russia denounced the U.S. for sending weapons to Ukraine.

Amid the tensions, Griner's supporters kept a low profile in hopes of a quiet