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Swedish prosecutor stated that the investigation against Assange could potentially be re-opened should there be a change in those circumstances.
On Monday, Sweden's state prosecutor will hold a press conference to disclose whether or not the judiciary plans to reopen a preliminary investigation into rape allegations against WikiLeaks whistleblower Julian Assange.
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Two Swedish women previously accused Assange of sexual assault and rape in 2010, although the sexual assault charges were dropped due to the statute of limitations running out in 2015.
In 2017, the rape allegation was dropped due to Assange's stay at the Ecuadorean embassy, but the Swedish prosecutor has now stated that the investigation could potentially be re-opened should there be a change in those circumstances.
The rape case, filed by a woman under the alias Miss W, accused Assange of engaging in unprotected sexual intercourse with her while she was sleeping. Miss W says they had engaged in consensual intercourse previously in the same night, but that Assange showed an "unwillingness" to use a condom.
Author and journalist Sady Doyle pexpressed disappointment "particularly for progressives, there was a real reluctance to admit that one of 'ours' could be guilty of something like that."
British government should grant extradition of Julian Assange if authorities reopen rape allegations, Diane Abbott says in letter to colleagues. pic.twitter.com/2qY1Yctrt7
— Ashley Cowburn (@ashcowburn) April 13, 2019
Assange has denied the allegations and continues to fight to get the charges dropped.
A lawyer for the imprisoned Australian fears that Sweden should turn him over to the United States to be tried for the case in which classified military and diplomatic documents were released to the public.
At a court hearing before the Westminster Court of Magistrates in London, Assange denied "consent" to the extradition request made by the U.S.
Last month, Assange was arrested by British authorities at the Ecuadorean embassy after Ecuador's President Lenin Moreno withdrew the journalist's asylum.
Assange is currently serving 50 weeks in a British prison for breaching bail conditions while avoiding extradition to the United States and living in the Ecuadorean embassy in London for seven years.
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