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Ecuador Play Could Land Assange in Jail

Stay at embassy violates bail conditions

By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff

Posted Jun 20, 2012 6:52 AM CDT

(Newser) – Julian Assange spent the night at Ecuador's London embassy—and it could cost him. The move violates the conditions of his $315,000 bail, which say he must remain at his friend's address in eastern England between 10pm and 8am. Now Scotland Yard is looking to arrest the WikiLeaks founder, reports the BBC, though the AP notes that so long as he remains in the embassy, he's beyond the grasp of British authorities. Ecuador, meanwhile, is "studying and analyzing" his request for asylum, officials said.

If, however, Ecuador officials settle the matter by "effectively putting him on the doorstep of the embassy," he could escape prosecution, a BBC correspondent says. Assange wouldn't be off the hook though. Instead, he would likely be extradited to Sweden. Though many legal experts admit to being mystified by Assange's dramatic asylum bid, one speculates that he's perhaps hoping to have a bargaining chip he can use to convince Sweden not to hand him over to the US.

Police stand guard outside the Ecuadorian Embassy, London, Wednesday June 20, 2012. WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange has made a run for the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, seeking asylum in a long shot move that, if successful, would place him in a small, friendly South American country rather than in Sweden...
Police stand guard outside the Ecuadorian Embassy, London, Wednesday June 20, 2012. WikiLeaks chief Julian Assange has made a run for the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, seeking asylum in a long shot move...   (AP Photo/Tim Hales)
This is a Monday, Dec. 5, 2011 file photo of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as he pauses as he makes a statement to media gathered outside the High Court in London.
This is a Monday, Dec. 5, 2011 file photo of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as he pauses as he makes a statement to media gathered outside the High Court in London.   (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
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COMMENTS
Showing 2 of 2 comments
Izman15
Jun 20, 2012 9:39 AM CDT
I had a hard time believing the claims of these two women who seemed to have had (at least in my book) consensual sex. If you read the report: "on 14 August 2010 he committed "unlawful coercion" when he held complainant 1 down with his body weight in a sexual manner; that he "sexually molested" complainant 1 when he had condom-less sex with her after she insisted that he use one; that he had condom-less sex with complainant 2 on the morning of 17 August while she was asleep; and that he "deliberately molested" complainant 1 on 18 August 2010 by pressing his erect penis against her body"  How is it non consensual sex when you request him to put on a condom? Sounds like he went bareback when she wanted a rubber, it's a dick thing to do but not rape at least not in my book. And the second woman, she is asleep, presumably in one of their beds and he has sex with her. She didn't wake up? There is no mention of either of the women saying no just that they didn't have the sex they wanted. Sorry but rape laws prevent you from being violently violated or drugged neither of which seemed to have happened. This seemed to me to be a nuisance claim meant to set up a civil suit later for a money grab. The determined nature that Assange is fighting this, however, is tarnishing his case. If he called the women liars and went to Sweden on his own volition to fight these charges against him I would be much more ready to believe him. But all this hiding and flitting around trying to avoid extradition seems like desperation. There are some who claim that this warrant is intended to get Assange into Sweden so that Sweden can extradite him to the US to stand trial for wiki leaks, but I have a hard time believing that Sweden would do that when the US has been unable to get Britain a close ally to do the same.
Ucantusethatname
Jun 20, 2012 7:39 AM CDT
Assange deserves a medal for exposing the truth instead of harassment. 
 

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