Julian Assange, the WikiLeaks founder known for exposing Hillary Clinton’s emails, has reached a plea deal with the United States Department of Justice after spending five years in prison.
Assange was originally arrested in April 2019 after spending seven years in self-exile in London. Since his arrest, he has been held in the UK’s Belmarsh prison, outside of London.
He has agreed to plead guilty to violating the Espionage Act, a charge that carries a recommended 62-month sentence. However, since Assange has already spent more time than this behind bars, he would be released.
Assange is expected to appear in a Northern Mariana Islands courtroom within the next few days to finalize the plea deal.
In a post on X, WikiLeaks wrote:
JULIAN ASSANGE IS FREE
Julian Assange is free. He left Belmarsh maximum security prison on the morning of 24 June, after having spent 1901 days there. He was granted bail by the High Court in London and was released at Stansted airport during the afternoon, where he boarded a plane and departed the UK.
This is the result of a global campaign that spanned grass-roots organisers, press freedom campaigners, legislators and leaders from across the political spectrum, all the way to the United Nations. This created the space for a long period of negotiations with the US Department of Justice, leading to a deal that has not yet been formally finalised. We will provide more information as soon as possible.
After more than five years in a 2×3 metre cell, isolated 23 hours a day, he will soon reunite with his wife Stella Assange, and their children, who have only known their father from behind bars.
WikiLeaks published groundbreaking stories of government corruption and human rights abuses, holding the powerful accountable for their actions. As editor-in-chief, Julian paid severely for these principles, and for the people’s right to know.
As he returns to Australia, we thank all who stood by us, fought for us, and remained utterly committed in the fight for his freedom.
Julian’s freedom is our freedom.
JULIAN ASSANGE IS FREE
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) June 24, 2024
Julian Assange is free. He left Belmarsh maximum security prison on the morning of 24 June, after having spent 1901 days there. He was granted bail by the High Court in London and was released at Stansted airport during the afternoon, where he boarded a…
WikiLeaks also posted a video showing that he has been released.
Julian Assange boards flight at London Stansted Airport at 5PM (BST) Monday June 24th. This is for everyone who worked for his freedom: thank you.
Julian Assange boards flight at London Stansted Airport at 5PM (BST) Monday June 24th. This is for everyone who worked for his freedom: thank you.#FreedJulianAssange pic.twitter.com/Pqp5pBAhSQ
— WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) June 25, 2024
Reports indicate that Julian Assange is expected to return to his birthplace, Australia, upon his release. However, the timing, coinciding with the upcoming election, has led many social media users to speculate.
Julian Assange just entered the election
— Jack Poso 🇺🇸 (@JackPosobiec) June 24, 2024
He knows everything 😎 pic.twitter.com/Mq8VLdooSx
— One Bad Dude (@OneBadDude_) June 24, 2024
Interesting timing pic.twitter.com/8sdQCdZbHc
— One Bad Dude (@OneBadDude_) June 24, 2024
NBC News has more details on the plea deal:
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange plans to plead guilty as part of a plea deal with the U.S. Justice Department that will allow him to go free after spending five years in a British prison, according to court documents.
Assange was charged by criminal information — which typically signifies a plea deal — with conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defense information, the court documents say.
U.S. charges against Assange stem from one of the largest publications of classified information in American history, which took place during the first term of Barack Obama’s presidency. Starting in late 2009, according to the government, Assange conspired with Chelsea Manning, a military intelligence analyst, to disclose tens of thousands of activity reports about the war in Afghanistan, hundreds of thousands of reports about the war in Iraq, hundreds of thousands of State Department cables and assessment briefs of Guantanamo Bay detainees using his WikiLeaks website.
Court documents revealing Assange’s plea deal were filed Monday evening in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory in the Pacific Ocean. Assange was expected to make an appearance in that court and to be sentenced to 62 months, with credit for time served in British prison, meaning he would be free to return to Australia, where he was born.
Assange has been held in the high-security Belmarsh Prison on the outskirts of London for five years and previously spent seven years in self-exile at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London — where he reportedly fathered two children — until his asylum was withdrawn and he was forcibly carried out of the embassy and arrested in April 2019.
Court documents detailing Assange’s plea deal were filed Monday night in the U.S. District Court for the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory in the Pacific Ocean.
Assange will plead guilty to charges under “Conspiracy To Obtain and Disclose National Defense Information.”
