(LibertySociety.com) – In 2019, authorities in the United Kingdom arrested Wikileaks Founder Julian Assange after the Ecuadorian Embassy evicted him. Since then, he has been fighting extradition to the United States, where the Department of Justice has charged him with almost two dozen crimes. Now, Assange’s family is speaking out and pleading for help.
On Wednesday, June 16, Assange’s father, John Shipton, and his brother, Gabriel Shipton, spoke to Fox News’ Tucker Carlson about his predicament. His dad said he didn’t do anything more than offend “certain sections of Washington,” and because of that, he has “faced 12 years now of persecution and harassment.” He went on to point out that even though his son isn’t an American citizen, the US government is charging him under the 1917 Espionage Act. Further, Assange is being threatened with more than 175 years in jail over “nothing at all.”
Gabriel, Assange’s brother, told Carlson that he was denied bail and is sitting in prison, “an innocent man,” unable to see family or lawyers. The family doesn’t know when it will end, and since President Joe Biden took office, no elected officials have supported the family.
In 2019, the DOJ announced an 18-count superseding indictment against Assange for his “alleged role in one of the largest compromises of classified information” in US history. The indictment named Chelsea Manning, the former intelligence analyst who leaked classified information to Wikileaks. Former President Barack Obama commuted Manning’s sentence before he left office in 2017. A year after that indictment was announced, the DOJ announced more charges related to the Manning leak.
First Amendment proponents around the world have called for Assange’s release. We’ll keep you posted on the developing story.
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