WikiLeaks Founder Assange Granted Bail

By Beecher Tuttle

TMCnet Contributor

 

A U.K. judge on Tuesday granted bail to WikiLeaks architect Julian Assange, potentially freeing him until his next hearing on Jan. 11. Assange will remain in custody until at least tomorrow pending a possible appeal.

Judge Howard Riddle reportedly decided to release the highly-controversial figurehead after several prominent and wealthy supporters, including filmmaker Michael Moore, offered to pay the bail, which was eventually set at $315,000. The judge said that Assange will only remain free if he abides by a number of restrictions, including surrendering his passport, following a strict curfew and wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet at all times, according to the Guardian. 

The 39-year-old Wikileaks founder was confined to a jail cell earlier this month after he was accused of sexual misconduct by two Swedish women. Assange has vehemently denied the charges and has said that he will fight Sweden's attempt to extradite him. He also suggested that the swift and stern reaction to the allegations is an act of retribution for Wikileaks publishing once-secret U.S. diplomatic documents.

Prosecutors asked the judge to deny the bail request because of the serious nature of the alleged crimes and the fact that Assange has the financial means to abscond. Vaughn Smith, head of the journalism organization known as the Frontline Club, assured the judge that Assange would remain in his 10-bedroom manor, which is less than a mile away from the police station where he will be forced to check-in on a daily basis.

Crowds both inside and outside the courtroom erupted in applause when Riddle granted Assange's bail. Wikileaks' founder has received tremendous support from journalists, hackers and anti-government groups, even though the charges are unrelated to the document-leaking scandal. In fact, the UK government was forced to put plans in place for the potential denial of Assange's bail.

Sir Peter Ricketts, the nation's national security adviser, warned officials that a group of 'hacktivists' known as Anonymous could go after the government's network and critical systems if Assange was forced to remain in prison. The hackers are allegedly responsible for going after Visa and MasterCard when the companies stopped allowing their cards to be used to send donations to WikiLeaks.

Stick with TMC (News - Alert) for any updates on the appeals process.