WASHINGTON — WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has agreed to plead guilty to a conspiracy charge this week as part of a plea deal that will allow him to go free after spending five years in a British prison, according to court documents.
According to documents, Assange was charged with conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defense information. Once he pleads guilty, Assange will return to Australia, his country of citizenship, after the proceedings.
Assange’s website also published hacked emails from the Democratic National Committee that became the center of the 2016 presidential race. Russian intelligence officers were then indicted in connection with the hacking in 2018. At a joint news conference with then-President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin days later, Trump contradicted the intelligence community, saying that Putin was “extremely strong and powerful in his denial” that Russians interfered in the 2016 election to help him win.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated with more information.
