STOCKHOLM (AP) — Swedish prosecutors said Monday they are reopening a rape case against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and will seek his extradition from Britain.
The move sets up a legal battle with the United States, where the Australian computer hacker is separately wanted for allegedly hacking into a Pentagon computer. British authorities will have to decide which extradition request takes precedence.
Swedish prosecutors filed preliminary charges — a step short of formal charges — against Assange after he visited the country in 2010, following complaints from two Swedish women who said they were the victims of sex crimes committed by Assange. The Australian secret-spiller now faces questioning in Sweden, on top of being held on a U.S. extradition warrant for allegedly conspiring with former Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning to hack into a Pentagon computer.
But Elisabeth Massi Fritz, the lawyer for the woman who reported being raped by Assange, said her client"feels great gratitude" over the decision to reopening the case. She added that while there is a risk the case may cut close to the statute of limitations deadline,"there is also a chance that we will be able to get him extradited before August 17 next year."The 47-year-old Australian met the women in connection with a lecture in August 2010 in Stockholm. One was involved in organizing an event for Sweden's center-left Social Democratic Party and offered to host Assange at her apartment. The other was in the audience.
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