Reuters Investigates
Insight and investigations from our expert reporters
How Mendax made WikiLeaks a sensation
By Mark Hosenball
On Tuesday, Julian Assange, the controversial Australian-born founder and frontman of the WikiLeaks website is scheduled to appear in a London courtroom for the latest hearing on a request by Swedish authorities that he be extradited to Sweden for questioning in a sexual misconduct investigation.
Assange has denied any wrongdoing in Sweden, and some of his supporters have dropped dark hints that the Swedish investigation could be part of some sinister conspiracy by the CIA or other WikiLeaks enemies to shut down both Assange and the website, which has lately roiled the world of international diplomacy by disclosing a cache of secret U.S. diplomatic cables.
Swedish prosecutors and the lawyer for two women who complained to the authorities about Assange’s behavior deny the sex investigation has anything to do with spy plots or politics. People who know the mercurial and sometimes imperious Assange say that even on best behavior, he can be a difficult person to deal with.
In this special report last week, we took you behind the Swedish investigation into the sex allegations against Assange, and explained how Assange himself might have avoided any investigation if he had been more accessible to two women who were anxious that he undergo medical tests which he apparently wanted to avoid.
WikiLeaks: What really happened in Sweden
Some supporters of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange see a conspiracy behind Swedish prosecutors’ efforts to question him there on sexual misconduct charges. The prosecutors deny their move is political.
Mark Hosenball’s special report “Fear of STDs sparked case against WikiLeaks boss” tells the story of what happened in August when Assange was visiting Sweden.
