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Detention photos of Brittney Griner in Russia aren’t new and they weren’t ‘leaked’
If Your Time is short
- Old photos of WNBA star Brittney Griner when she was in Russian custody are being repackaged online as leaked images, but they were shot and shared by news outlets such as The Associated Press.
More than a year ago, WNBA player Brittney Griner was detained in Russia while she was visiting the country to play basketball in the offseason. Customs officials alleged they found vape cartridges with cannabis oil in her luggage, and in August, she was sentenced to nine years in prison.
But in December, Griner was freed after Russia and the United States agreed to swap prisoners.
So, some Facebook users may have been confused to see an April 1 Facebook post with a photo of Griner that said: "Brittney Griner’s shocking detention photos leaked online. Fans are pleading for better treatment."
This post was flagged as part of Facebook’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook.)
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The photo is authentic, but it wasn’t leaked. Kirill Kudryavstev took it for Agence France-Presse when Griner arrived at a June court hearing in Moscow. Another photographer, Alexander Zemlianichenko, also took pictures of Griner for The Associated Press; those images were published widely by news organizations.
The Facebook post directs users to a link in the post’s comments for the "full story." It’s an undated blog post of suspicious origin — viral-stories.online — and it refers to the same photos of Griner that were taken in court.
We rate claims about "leaked" detention photos False.
Our Sources
Facebook post, April 1, 2023
Los Angeles Times, First photos of WNBA’s Brittney Griner appearing in a Russian court, June 27, 2022
Viral stories, A’ja Wilson’s Emotional Reaction to Brittney Griner’s Shocking Detention Photos, visited April 3, 2023
ESPN, Brittney Griner Russia drug case timeline: Prison, trial, release, Dec. 8, 2022
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Detention photos of Brittney Griner in Russia aren’t new and they weren’t ‘leaked’
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