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Assange Says Harrods Assisting Metro Police in 'Round-the-Clock Vigil'
The Daily Mail reports that Julian Assange seems to have yet another foe (or at least friend of a foe) watching persistently while he stays put in the Ecuadorean embassy in London: Harrod's Department Store. The Metro Police, according to Assange, have developed a relationship with the store, and are using that relationship to facilitate their full-time observation of his roosting place in the embassy. When the founder of Wikileaks says, "We have obtained documents from Harrods [saying that] police have people stationed 24 hours a day in some of the opposing buildings Harrods controls," it seems likely that those documents actually exist.
It may be unusual that its going on for such a long period of time but police (in the UK and elsewhere) regularly work with building owners to get access to vantage points overlooking suspect properties to observe what is going on.
..is the effort they spend for Jesus Assange. They must be really scared of the truth.
@Anonymous Coward: "Why is this shit even on Slashdot?"
.. Collateral Murder - Wikileaks - Iraq
Maybe because of this
"Political language... is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind."
This is a suprise? People should be outraged? Not so much.
Adds he's paranoia got the best of him years ago. Not his well founded paranoia about the USA Three Letter Agencies, but his paranoia about his place of power in The Cult of Assange.
Most of his personal issues could have been resolved years ago, his current situation are of his own making.
He needs to fly to Sweeden and take care of his personal business, you know: "man up".
The chances of him being extradited to the U.S. are slim to none at this point.
If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
He's a criminal
When was he convicted?
He's a journalist how? The only persecution he is facing is prosecution based upon a detailed legal framework in place before Assange ever entered Sweden. Assange's demands that Sweden change its laws on his behalf is the height of arrogance.
The validity of the charges in Sweden aren't his only problem. They could drop the case, he'd still be in trouble with the UK because he fled bail. Bail is an agreement between you and the court. You agree to appear as ordered, and they let you out of jail. Often there is also a monetary component to try and ensure your compliance. However regardless of the details, you are legally required to present yourself in court when ordered.
So when Sweden said they wanted him, the UK arrested him. In the EU there's some pretty strong extradition rules so even though the UK had no issue with him, their extradition treaty with Sweden required them to arrest him. He was granted bail, and the monetary component was paid for by supporters. At the point, he had to wait for a court date when the UK courts would determine if the extradition request was valid. At that point if they did, they'd hand him off to Sweden, give back his bail money, and would be all done as far as they were concerned.
They did find it was a valid request, he challenged that finding, and so on up to the UK's high court. They ruled that yes, it was a valid request. Remember this has nothing to do with guilt, they are not interested in that. Their only interest is if the extradition request is a valid one per the treaty. It was, so they said "Ok, you have to turn yourself in and we'll ship you off to Sweden." He decided not to, and instead fled.
Well at that point he become a criminal in the UK. They now had a criminal interest in him since he'd broken UK law by skipping bail. Doesn't matter anything about the original charges. This is a separate crime, and it is an ongoing one, so no statute of limitations.
That's how it works basically everywhere. If the court says you have to how up, and you don't, that by itself is a crime.
He expected freedom of speech. He volunteered to be a spokesperson for a movement. The same thing would have happened to anyone else. Assange was chosen wisely to be spokesperson for his talent of being loud. Everyone seems to forget that Wikileaks was an unsanctioned press organization.
Six million a year to watch him? Are you kidding me. You don't spend that kind of money to help extradite a date rapist where his alleged crime occurred in another country. He is clearly being persecuted. Interested parties are clearly sending a message.
I think it's highly likely that the US will seek extradition and the Swedish will give him to them if the British don't do it first once they happily remove the death penalty. There is no way the US would have sought the death penalty anyway. They will try him as an enemy of the state and convict him for espionage. They had secrets and he did revel some of them on purpose and others by accident. Never mind that he isn't a US citizen and the that it's didn't happen on US soil. He will likely wind up sitting in federal prison trying his case for ten years and appealing it for another twenty before they simply let him go.
P.S. The person that did do the espionage has been convicted but he in my option should be pardoned for mental illness. Those they keep him in service with access to top secret intelligent against his will when he was so clearly unstable should be the ones serving time in a military prison. I might not have let him out of service buy I would have defiantly transferred him into another MOS. Latrine duty anyone?
Reality is that he is hiding in a closet, and will be arrested when he leaves. Even if he makes it another 5 years and escapes he Swedish warrant, he'll still be facing having skipped bail in the UK. There is no time limit in the UK while you're wanted for something and hiding.
Reality doesn't mean, "your opinion."
Name-calling doesn't make right. Durrrrrrrrrrrr