STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Oct. 29 (UPI) — A Swedish official on Friday rejected a request from WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange that his European arrest warrant be temporarily lifted so he can attend a funeral for a friend next week.
Assange has been taking refuge at the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012 to avoid being arrested and extradited to Sweden stemming from accusations that he sexually assaulted two women during a visit to Stockholm in 2010.
Assange, 45, asked that the warrant be lifted long enough for him to leave the embassy building, attend the funeral in London and return.
The official in charge, though, Marianne Ny, rejected that request.
“I am heart-broken that this official has rejected my request to attend Gavin’s funeral. Her rejection is consistent with the corrupt and frankly wicked manner in which she has exercised her ‘discretion’ over me, as the UN also ruled earlier this year,” Assange said in a statement posted by WikiLeaks. “This callous official has shown no consideration for my grief or that of Gavin’s family.”
Assange said he plans to appeal to Swedish Attorney General Anders Perklev.
Assange is also avoiding extradition to the United States to face charges over the leak of 500.000 sensitive documents relating to the U.S. military campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan.
