WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange filed a formal complaint with Swedish authorities, asking for an investigation into U.S. intelligence operations in Europe and alleging his background was wrongfully vetted by FBI agents.
Mr. Assange said an “intelligence source” just gave him a heads up that an Australian spy group fed information about his background to a Swedish Security Service agent — and that the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation also sought personal information from the same Australian group, United Press International reported.
Attorneys for Mr. Assange say they’ve filed a complaint alleging the U.S. military pursued intelligence information about WikiLeaks and about his personal background as far back as 2009, all the way to 2013. They allege the military sent intelligence agents to scope out Mr. Assange at a conference in Berlin in 2009 and to snatch his suitcase during a flight from Stockholm to Berlin a year later, UPI reported.
“I am informed by my legal advisers that this formal document may trigger an investigation and that independent judicial bodies may seek explanations of the responsible authorities as a result,” he said, as UPI reported. “I file this affidavit in the knowledge that there will likely be pressures for this matter not to be investigated, but in the knowledge that the law requires an investigation.”
Mr. Assange, who is fighting extradition to Sweden in two sexual assault cases, is hiding out in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London. Mr. Assange said in one press report that he may file similar complaints in Germany and Australia.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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