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WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange Faces Arrest In Britain As Swedes Poised To Issue Arrest Warrant
The former Australian hacker faced arrest by Scotland Yard officers after a Swedish judge indicted him for "rape, sexual molestation and unlawful coercion".
Mark Stephens, Mr Assange's lawyer, confirmed his presence in Britain but insisted that his precise movements and location "are a matter which is kept confidential".
"I have been in touch with Scotland Yard and Europol today to ask if there were any charges. They said they had nothing outstanding. No public arrest warrant has been issued," but they were aware that the Swedish authorities had issued one, he said.
Mr Stephens admitted that Mr Assange "would find it difficult" to travel to Sweden but denied he was 'hiding'.
He said: "The difficulty is that when Julian moves from country to country it takes a significant amount of planning. That is not to say that we don't want to meet the prosecutors.
"He is not in hiding because he has offered to meet them. He would offer to meet them at the Swedish Embassy or at a neutral venue."
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Mr Assange, 39, hit the headlines this summer after Wikileaks began to release thousands of secret Pentagon documents about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, security breaches that have deeply angered the American authorities and allies including Britain.
A Swedish court on Thursday announced that an international warrant would be issued. "It has been decided that he be detained," said Alan Camitz, a Stockholm district court judge.
Marianne Ny, a Swedish sex crimes prosecutor, said: "I requested his arrest so we could carry out an interrogation with Assange. That is the reason. The next step is to issue an international arrest warrant."
Mr Assange has denied the allegations of sexual assault, while admitting he had encounters with the two women concerned in the charges during a visit to Sweden in August. An original demand for a warrant was dropped three months ago.
In a recent interview, the open information campaigner said the charges were part of a "smear campaign" aimed at discrediting his website and that the US intelligence services "are probably very happy now".
Mr Stephens insisted that Mr Assange had done his best to discuss the charges with prosecutors.
"He says he happens to be in the UK at the moment but I'm happy to meet at a place of your choosing or happy to meet at Scotland Yard. We then offer a telephone interview and video conference. The prosecutors declined," he said.
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Sources: MSNBC, Telegraph, Youtube, Google Maps
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