The Saipan surprise: How delicate talks led to the unlikely end of Julian Assange’s 12-year saga

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By Eric Tucker / The Associated Press WASHINGTON—About a year and a half ago, a lawyer for Julian Assange presented federal prosecutors in Virginia with a longshot request: Dismiss the case against the WikiLeaks founder.

The Saipan surprise: How delicate talks led to the unlikely end of Julian Assange’s 12-year saga about Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton that were stolen by Russian military intelligence officers in what officials said was brazen election interference by Moscow.“WikiLeaks, I love WikiLeaks.” The view was different inside the Justice Department that Trump would soon lead.

With the prospects for Assange’s transfer in the balance, his team saw the presence of a more press-friendly attorney general, Merrick Garland, as a potential opening to try for a resolution in the case. The negotiations were largely held with prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia, where the case was charged, but then in the final months with Justice Department national security officials.

From the Justice Department’s perspective, the more than five years he spent in a high-security British prison was in line, or potentially even greater, than a sentence he might have received in the US. In March, a British court ruled that Assange could not be extradited unless US authorities guaranteed he wouldn’t get the death penalty and could use the same free-speech defense as a US citizen would.

The deal with the US was reached on June 19, according to London’s High Court, one of many behind-the-scenes actions that led to Assange’s freedom.

 

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