Julian Assange has asked Spain to hand a 20-year jail sentence to the head of a security firm who spied on him whilst he was holed up in Ecuador's embassy in London.
His lawyers suggested the jail term for David Morales, accused of discovery and disclosure of secrets, bribery, money laundering and illegal possession of weapons, in a statement seen by AFP on Saturday, local time.
The WikiLeaks founder was released from a high-security British prison last June after a plea bargain with the US government over his work publishing top-secret military and diplomatic information.
He had spent five years behind bars fighting extradition from Britain and another seven before that in the Ecuador embassy in London, where he claimed political asylum.
Between 2015 and 2018, the Spanish company Undercover Global oversaw the embassy's security.
It is owned by Mr Morales, a former military officer who is awaiting trial in Spain.
Mr Assange's defence argued that in 2016, Mr Morales and US authorities established contact regarding the passing of information about the Australian.
A Spanish court concluded that Mr Morales allegedly spied on Mr Assange and handed over "illegally obtained information" about him and other personalities, including several Latin American presidents, with whom he had contact.
The judge said in 2017, Mr Morales installed new security cameras which, unlike the previous ones, recorded confidential conversations the activist had with his defence team, his family members and public figures.
Mr Morales told technicians to enable a real-time streaming system while they were installing the cameras, according to the judge.
"He intended to open two streaming channels for online access, an official one for Ecuador and another for 'friends of the United States'," who wanted Mr Assange's extradition, the investigating judge said.
Plans to kidnap Assange
In 2020, two anonymous sources who worked for the Spanish security firm contracted to work within the embassy told a London court there were plans to kidnap Mr Assange.
The security contacts said Mr Morales and US representatives discussed plans to kidnap or poison Mr Assange as part of an elaborate spying operation during the latter part of his seven-year stay at the Ecuadorian embassy.
US government lawyers did not contest the submission of the anonymous statements but said at the time they were largely irrelevant to the matter under consideration in London's Old Bailey court.
One of the witnesses said a suggestion was made that "more extreme measures should be employed against the 'guest' to put an end to the situation of Assange's permanence in the embassy".
The idea to leave the door to the embassy open was part of one plan, the witness said.
"[This] would allow the argument that this had been an accidental mistake, which would allow persons to enter from outside the embassy and kidnap the asylee," the submitted statement read.
The two witnesses alleged that Mr Morales switched to "the dark side" and had instructed the installation of cameras with sophisticated audio capabilities to secretly record Mr Assange's meetings at the embassy, particularly those with his lawyers.
The anonymous witnesses both claimed that Mr Morales said the surveillance was initiated at the behest of "our American friends" and that he had been well rewarded.
ABC/AFP
