Swedish prosecutors' handling of rape and molestation allegations against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has caused him and his whistleblower website "enormous" damage.
Assange said that there are millions of websites around the world with the combination 'Julian Assange and rape' as a result of how the prosecutor initially handled the case. Assange told Swedish daily Aftonbladet that the damage caused to him and WikiLeaks was enormous.
A Swedish duty prosecutor last week issued an arrest warrant for Assange over an allegation of rape but chief prosecutor Eva Finne abruptly withdrew it. Finne said that she had no reason to believe a crime had been committed in that case, but said she had enough evidence to continue investigating a separate molestation allegation against Assange.
So far Assange has not heard anything about this this allegation. The Swedish press claim that Assange had stayed with the woman who made the molestation allegation for a few days. The allegations appeared to be linked to his refusal to leave the woman's home when she asked him to go.
Other newspapers have claimed it was related to him refusing to wear a condom when asked. Assange has said the claims are part of a "smear campaign" aimed at discrediting his whistleblowing website, which is locked in a row with the Pentagon over the release of secret US documents about the war in Afghanistan.
Friday, 27 August 2010 09:04
Wikileaks claims rape allegations caused enormous damage
Written by Nick Farell
Assange's name associated with rape
Nick Farell
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