Russian prosecutors demand 9.5 years in jail for Brittney Griner

Verdict expected soon on US basketball player before potential prisoner exchange

Russian prosecutors have asked for the US basketball player Brittney Griner to be sentenced to nine and a half years in prison, as the Kremlin wraps up her politically charged trial before a potential prisoner exchange.

Prosecutors in the Russian court said Griner's arrest on drug charges was fully proven" and demanded she serve nearly a decade in a high-security prison and pay a large fine.