MOSCOW, Russia (AP) — Jailed American basketball star Brittney Griner on Thursday pleaded guilty to drug possession and smuggling during her trial in Moscow but said she had no intention of committing a crime, Russian news agencies reported.

The reports quoted Griner as saying through an interpreter at the court hearing that she had acted unintentionally because she was packing in haste.

Griner was detained in February at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport after vape canisters with cannabis oil allegedly were found in her luggage. She faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of large-scale transportation of drugs.

The trial of the Phoenix Mercury star and two-time Olympic gold medalist began last week amid a growing chorus of calls for Washington to do more to secure her freedom nearly five months after her arrest.

Before Thursday’s hearing, Russian police escorted Griner, handcuffed and clad in a bright red T-shirt and sports trousers, into the courtroom past a crowd of journalists.

Elizabeth Rood, deputy chief of mission at the US Embassy in Moscow, told reporters after the hearing that she spoke to Griner in the courtroom and shared a letter from President Joe Biden that she read.

“She’s eating well, she’s able to read books and under the circumstances she’s doing well,” Rood said of Griner.

“I would like again to emphasize the commitment of the US government at the very highest level to bring home safely Ms. Griner and all US citizens wrongfully detained as well as the commitment of the US Embassy in Moscow to care for and protect the interests of all US citizens detained or imprisoned in Russia,” Rood said.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov bristled at the US description of Briner as “wrongfully detained” and warned that “attempts by the American side to make noise in public … don’t help the practical settlement of issues.”

Griner’s trial was adjourned after its start last week because two scheduled witnesses did not appear. Such delays are routine in Russian courts and her detention has been authorised through December 20, suggesting the proceedings could last months.

Although Griner’s supporters initially kept a low profile, calls for the United States to take action spiked after the trial’s first day.

The Reverend Al Sharpton, one of America’s most prominent Black activists, this week called for Biden to arrange a prayer meeting with Griner, saying, “Four months is too long for this to have gone on, and I hope the President acts on her pleas to come home.”