Assange could face bail violation charge

LONDON, June 20 (UPI) -- British police said WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange faces arrest after seeking political asylum in Ecuador.

Scotland Yard told The Daily Telegraph Wednesday Assange violated the conditions of his bail by entering the Ecuadorian Embassy in London and seeking asylum in order avoid extradition to Sweden where he faces sexual assault charges.

"One of the conditions was that he was supposed to be at a named bail address between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., and it was 10:20 p.m. that we were notified that he had breached that particular condition," said a police spokesman.

Assange remained inside the mission while his lawyers tried to negotiate a deal that would keep him from being sent to Sweden for trial in the alleged 2010 assaults.

"He is fine. He is in very good humor and very grateful for the hospitality of the embassy which has been very generous and welcoming," Gavin Macfadyen, director of the Center for Investigative Journalism, told reporters outside the embassy.

Assange's dramatic stab at freedom has also put some of his staunchest supporters on the spot. Three benefactors who put up his bail could lose their investment, the newspaper said.

The asylum request also angered his two alleged victims in Sweden. An attorney for the women told The Guardian "They are disappointed, but they are getting used to this by now."

"They know that all they can do is wait," said lawyer Claes Borgstrom. "I have told them I am not sure, but I think he will still be extradited."

Assange has insisted he is innocent, and some supported have said the charges were manufactured to derail the WikiLeaks project. There have been indications Assange, who is from Australia, is concerned the United States has intentions of pursuing charges against him over WikiLeaks' release of hundreds of thousands of sensitive State Department cables.