Who is Viktor Bout?

The life of Viktor Bout, the Russian arms dealer the U.S. swapped for imprisoned basketball star Brittney Griner, sometimes reads like a far-fetched spy thriller.

Here’s what we know about the man dubbed ‘the merchant of death.’

Bout became notorious for his willingness to arm almost anyone, from militias in Sierra Leone, to Charles Taylor’s brutal Liberian regime, to the Taliban. His life helped inspire the 2005 Hollywood film “Lord of War” starring Nicholas Cage.

Operating out of the United Arab Emirates, Bout used a fleet of Soviet-era planes to supply guns to insurgencies, warlords and rogue states around the world. He was arrested in 2008 in Thailand during a sting operation while trying to sell missiles.

In 2012, he was given a 25-year prison sentence by a U.S. court on multiple charges related to arms dealing. Russia has always proclaimed his innocence, describing his case as a glaring injustice and attempting to secure his release.