Sweden’s public prosecution decided to re-open the investigation against Julian Assange. As Guardian reported, Wikileaks said that judicial move would give Assange a chance to clear his name from the rape allegation.
After Ecuador abruptly withdrew its protection last month, Julian Assange made the headlines. Swedish Femida used that opportunity to finish the posponed investigation, said the deputy director of public prosecutions, Eva-Marie Persson. At a press conference, she confirmed: “I have today taken the decision to reopen the prelminary investigation.”
In 2017, prosecutors dropped the investigation because of their inability to proceed while Mr Assange remained in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. However, the Swedish side promised that the investigation could be reopened if the situation changed. After Ecuador abruptly withdrew the asylum from Assange last month, a lawyer for one of the women involved in the Swedish allegations subsequently asked for the investigation to be resumed.
Assange had also faced an investigation over a second sex-related allegation, but this was dropped in 2015 because time had run out. He has denied both allegations.
Parallelly, the wikileaks found is a person of interest for the United States. After his arrest in April, US made a request for his extradition in a case relating to WikiLeaks’ release of sensitive military and diplomatic documents. The charge against him carries a sentence of up to five years in prison. despite the arrest and re-opening the investigations, WikiLeaks believes that will be very helpful for Julian who could, at last. clear his name.
“Since Julian Assange was arrested on 11 April 2019 there has been considerable political pressure on Sweden to reopen their investigation, but there has always been political pressure surrounding this case,” Kristinn Hrafnsson, WikiLeaks’ editor-in-chief, said in a statement.
