LONDON, Oct. 12 (UPI) — London’s Metropolitan Police has withdrawn the permanent police presence outside of Ecuador’s embassy where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been staying under asylum for more than three years.
Assange was granted political asylum by Ecuador in 2012 under the authority of the 1951 Refugee Convention. The estimated cost of the three-year permanent, around-the-clock police presence at the embassy is more than $18 million.
The controversial founder of WikiLeaks was arrested in 2010 and he was set for extradition to Sweden to face sexual assault charges alleged by two women, but Assange did not surrender into custody.
Assange has said the charges are orchestrated to ultimately extradite him to the United States where he is wanted for questioning about the release of thousands of classified cables in 2010.
Metropolitan Police Service in a statement said that while it “remains committed to executing the arrest warrant and presenting Julian Assange before the court,” the case was reviewed and MPS has “withdrawn the physical presence of officers from outside the embassy.”
“The operation to arrest Julian Assange does however continue and should he leave the embassy the MPS will make every effort to arrest him,” MPS said in a statement. “However it is no longer proportionate to commit officers to a permanent presence.”
MPS said it needed to balance the interest of justice with the Assange case with the “ongoing risks to the safety of Londoners.”
In August, Swedish prosecutors dropped cases of sexual molestation and unlawful coercion due to statute of limitations. In September, prosecutors dropped cases of sexual misconduct.
Swedish officials recently said there was a possibility of reaching an agreement with Ecuador that may give prosecutors the opportunity to question Assange at the embassy.
“A significant amount of time has passed since Julian Assange entered the embassy, and despite the efforts of many people there is no imminent prospect of a diplomatic or legal resolution to this issue,” MPS continued. “Like all public services, MPS resources are finite. With so many different criminal, and other, threats to the city it protects, the current deployment of officers is no longer believed proportionate.”
The recent news has led media organizations to seemingly hamper the efforts of food delivery professionals to the embassy:
The Guardian reporter Jamie Grierson was able to verify the nature of the pizza arrival.
“Confirmed: the pizza arriving at Ecuadorian Embassy was for Assange and he spent [$19.93] on the dish. Trying to ascertain toppings choice,” Grierson wrote on Twitter.
