He has spent the last seven years in the Ecuadorian embassy
Julian Assange has been arrested at the Ecuadorian embassy in London “on a warrant issued by Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 29 June 2012, for failing to surrender to the court.”
The founder of WikiLeaks has taken refuge in the embassy since 2012 while he was on bail over sexual assault allegations made against him in Sweden.
Assange was granted refuge after he claimed that if he was sent to Sweden, he could be arrested by United States police and face charges related to his whistleblowing.
But Assange has finally been arrested after the Ecuadorian embassy withdrew his right to asylum.
In a statement the Met police said: “The MPS had a duty to execute the warrant, on behalf of Westminster magistrates court, and was invited into the embassy by the ambassador, following the Ecuadorian government’s withdrawal of asylum.”
BREAKING: #Assange removed from embassy – video pic.twitter.com/qsHy7ZVPg5
— Ruptly (@Ruptly) April 11, 2019
The home secretary, Sajid Javid, said: “Nearly seven years after entering the Ecuadorian embassy, I can confirm Julian Assange is now in police custody and rightly facing justice in the UK. I would like to thank Ecuador for its cooperation & @metpoliceuk for its professionalism. No one is above the law.”
The Ecuadorian president, Lenín Moreno has said Assange had “repeatedly violated” the conditions of his asylum in his country’s London embassy.
