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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

Judge blasts Assange for jumping bail, sentences him to almost one year [arstechnica.com]

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been sentenced to 50 weeks in prison [bbc.com] for fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy in London while on bail in 2012. At the time, he was facing possible extradition to Sweden on sexual assault charges.

Assange remained in the embassy until last month, when he was evicted by his Ecuadorian hosts [arstechnica.com] and re-arrested by British authorities.

Wednesday's sentencing is unlikely to be the end of Assange's legal problems. Shortly after he was re-arrested last month, US authorities unsealed an indictment charging him with conspiring with Chelsea Manning to crack a hashed password belonging to a Pentagon computer in 2010. At the time, Manning was an Army private leaking confidential military documents to WikiLeaks. Assange was unable to learn the password, but the US argues that his attempt is sufficient to charge him with conspiracy.

In a letter to the court, Assange argued that he had fled to the embassy out of fear that he'd be extradited to the United States and wind up being held indefinitely at the US prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Also at BBC [bbc.com].

Previously: Inadvertent Court Filing Suggests that the U.S. DoJ is Preparing to Indict Julian Assange [soylentnews.org]
U.S. Ramping Up Probe Against Julian Assange, WikiLeaks Says [soylentnews.org]
Ecuador Denies That Julian Assange Will be Evicted From Embassy in London [soylentnews.org]
Wikileaks Co-Founder Julian Assange Arrested at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London [soylentnews.org]
Julian Assange Associate Arrested In Ecuador [soylentnews.org]

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