Assange lawyers considering new appeal against Swedish arrest warrant following CPS emails

Lawyers representing Wikileaks founder Julian Assange over rape and sexual assault allegations say correspondence between prosecutors in England and Sweden reveal that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) was “more interested in winning the case than finding the truth”.

His legal team are considering a fresh appeal against the Swedish arrest warrant in his name following the news.

Swedish prosecutors sought Mr Assange’s extradition after he was accused by two women of rape and sexual assault in August 2010 in Stockholm.

When he lost his appeal against extradition he sought asylum in the Ecuadorean embassy in London in June 2012.

One allegations remains following the expiration of the others. He has denied the allegations and has not been charged.

The correspondence was obtained by Italian newspaper L’Espresso after it made a freedom of information request of Swedish authorities.

In an email between CPS lawyer Paul Close and Swedish prosecutor Marianne Ny, Mr Close stated that “in my view it would not be prudent” for Swedish prosecutors to question the Wikileaks founder in the UK, but that they should insist on his extradition.

He wrote: “Even if the defendant was to consent to such an interview on a mutually agreed basis, the defence would without any doubt seek to turn the event to its advantage.”

“It would inevitably allege it was conclusive proof that the Swedish authorities had no case whatsoever against him, and hence the interview was in the hope he would make a full and frank confession … Thus I suggest you interview him only on his surrender to Sweden and in accordance with Swedish law.”

He assured Ms Ny and her colleague in another email that the case was receiving special treatment, saying “please do not think that the case is being dealt with just as another extradition request”.

Mr Assange’s Swedish counsel, Per Samuelsson told The Guardian the emails were “an apparent example of a prosecutor giving another prosecutor advice in order to diminish the rights of the defendant”.

He added the Swedish legal team were considering calling for Ms Ny to be replaced as prosecutor in the case.

A spokesman for the CPS said that, when the advice was obtained in 2011 “we were following due process and advice was being given to facilitate that request.

“We could not have anticipated later developments, and in particular that Mr Assange would fail to surrender when the courts ordered his extradition to Sweden.”