WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has pleaded guilty to one count of espionage as part of a plea deal with US authorities.
The deal means Assange will be sentenced to a term already served in a British prison.
His court appearance took place in the US territory of Saipan. He left the UK on Monday after being released on bail from Belmarsh high security prison.
Addressing the court, Assange said he violated US law by encouraging leaks of classified data, but said he believed the Espionage Act violates free speech.
The US request to extradite the WikiLeaks founder on espionage charges has been withdrawn and he is soon expected to fly to his home country, Australia, to join his wife Stella and two children, Gabriel and Max.
WikiLeaks said Assange is expected to arrive in Canberra, the Australian capital, at 6:41 p.m. local time (9:41 GMT) if US District Judge Ramona Manglona accepts the plea.
The 52-year-old arrived at court wearing a dark suit and loose tie, after flying from London Stansted Airport on a charter plane and stopping for fuel in Bangkok.
The flight cost her $500,000 (£394,000), and Mrs Assange asked for “emergency” donations to cover the “enormous debt” on the plane.
Photo: Reuters
She said her husband was “not allowed to fly on commercial airlines or on routes to Saipan and then Australia” and that any contributions would be “greatly appreciated.”
Inside the court, Assange answered basic questions from Judge Manglona and appeared to listen attentively as the terms of the agreement were discussed.
Read more:
Timeline of Assange’s 13-year legal battle
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A map showing Julian Assange’s journey from the UK to Australia
As a condition of his deposition, he will be required to destroy information provided to WikiLeaks.
The hearing took place in Saipan – a US Commonwealth territory – due to Assange’s opposition to traveling to one of the 50 US states and the court’s proximity to Australia.
US prosecutors had alleged that Assange put lives at risk when he helped former US military intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning steal diplomatic cables and military files that WikiLeaks put online in 2010.
He had been caught in a legal battle in the UK over his extradition, which included his entry into the Ecuadorian Embassy in London in 2012 before his arrest in Belmarsh, where he had been since May 2019.
This story originally appeared on News.sky.com read the full story
