Brittney Griner remains in Russian custody after she was convicted of drug possession and smuggling in the country, and NBA Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman wants to help bring the WNBA star back to the United States.
Rodman told Jonathan Allen of NBC News on Saturday that he is planning to travel to Russia to seek Griner’s release.
“I got permission to go to Russia to help that girl,” Rodman said from a restaurant in Washington, D.C. “I’m trying to go this week.”
Diplomacy is a bit of a hobby for Rodman. The former Chicago Bulls star is known for the bizarre relationship he established with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un over the past several years. He claimed he helped secure the release of American Kenneth Bae from North Korea when Donald Trump was president back in 2018.
It is unclear what “permission” Rodman is referring to, as he would only need a visa from Moscow to be able to travel to Russia. The State Department does have a travel advisory in place that urges Americans not to travel to Russia, however.
Rodman has had many more interactions with Kim Jong Un than Russian president Vladimir Putin, but he insists he knows Putin “too well.”
Griner was sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison earlier this month for being caught with vape cartridges in her luggage at Moscow’s airport. US officials are in the process of working on a prisoner swap to bring the 31-year-old back.
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