1 min read

In this May 19, 2017 file photo, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange gestures to supporters outside the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he has been in self imposed exile since 2012. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein, File)

LONDON (AP) — WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is set to be sentenced for jumping British bail seven years ago and holing up in the Ecuadorian embassy.

Assange faces a maximum sentence of a year in prison when he is sentenced Wednesday at London’s Southwark Crown Court. A judge at an earlier hearing said the 47-year-old hacker’s offense “merits the maximum sentence.”

The Australian secret-spiller sought asylum in the South American country’s London embassy in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he was wanted for questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations. He faces a separate legal fight against a U.S. extradition request. American authorities have charged him with conspiring to break into a Pentagon computer system.

Comments are not available on this story. Read more about why we allow commenting on some stories and not on others.

We believe it's important to offer commenting on certain stories as a benefit to our readers. At its best, our comments sections can be a productive platform for readers to engage with our journalism, offer thoughts on coverage and issues, and drive conversation in a respectful, solutions-based way. It's a form of open discourse that can be useful to our community, public officials, journalists and others.

We do not enable comments on everything — exceptions include most crime stories, and coverage involving personal tragedy or sensitive issues that invite personal attacks instead of thoughtful discussion.

You can read more here about our commenting policy and terms of use. More information is also found on our FAQs.

Show less