WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been denied bail in the United Kingdom, where he has been jailed since 2019.
District Judge Vanessa Baraitser made the ruling on the grounds that Assange, 49, was a flight risk, claiming that there are “substantial grounds” to believe that he would “fail to surrender to court to face the appeal proceedings” if released.
“Mr. Assange still has an incentive to abscond from these as yet unresolved proceedings,” she said, noting that Assange has the “resources, abilities and sheer wherewithal” to flee.
Baraitser’s decision was announced just two days after she denied a request from the United States to bring Assange stateside to face espionage charges, arguing that he is a suicide risk if extradited.
“Faced with the conditions of near total isolation without the protective factors which limited his risk at HMP Belmarsh, I am satisfied the procedures described by the U.S. will not prevent Mr. Assange from finding a way to commit suicide,” she ruled.
Edward Fitzgerald, Assange’s lawyer, disagreed with the judge’s assessment, saying that Assange would enjoy greater legal protections by staying put.
“Mr. Assange has every reason to stay in this jurisdiction where he has the protection of the rule of law and this court’s decision,” he said.
Baraitser took issue with Fitzgerald’s optimistic outlook on the case.
“As far as Mr. Assange is concerned, this case has not yet been won,” she said.
Assange was charged under the 1917 Espionage Act as well as the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. If found guilty on all the charges, he faces up to 175 years in prison, though the U.S. has said it would likely only be four to six years. The coronavirus pandemic slowed and delayed the extradition hearings.
