US authorities seek to accuse Assange of espionage, punish him by death, says Wikileaks
The US authorities seek to accuse Wikileaks founder Julian Assange of espionage so that he can be punished by death, Wikileaks said on Twitter on Friday, according to TASS news agency report.
"US Department of Justice is attempting to build a case against Julian Assange based on the Espionage Act. Convictions under the Espionage Act can be punished by death," the tweet reads.
The source reminds that Assange was arrested by the United Kingdom’s Metropolitan Police on April 11 after Ecuador’s President Lenin Moreno had announced the withdrawal of his asylum. His lawyers say that if extradited to the United States, Assange may face a 35-year prison term or capital punishment. The US Department of Justice has said, though, that Assange may get a five-year prison term at most for computer hacking.