Assange coordinated hackers, harassed staff and smeared faeces on embassy wall, Ecuador president claims
Julian Assange smeared faeces on the wall of the Ecuadorian embassy, abused staff and hosted hackers inside the building, Ecuador's president has claimed.
Lenin Moreno said Assange gave hackers who visited him directions on how to propogate information on important issues to both him and financiers while inside the embassy.
Mr Moreno said Swedish programmer Ola Bini, who is in custody in Ecuador, was one of the hackers who visited him on multiple occasions.
Bini hacked mobile phones and online accounts belonging to private citizens and Ecuador's government, Mr Moreno claimed.
In Quito, Ecuador, where Bini had sought asylum, Bini's parents called on authorities to release their son. His father, Dag Gustafsson, said he was "nothing more" than Assange's friend.
Assange had been in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012 but relations between himself and officials had grown increasingly tense.
In the weeks leading up to Assange's removal from the embassy, WikiLeaks reported Ecuador was going to revoke his asylum, something the South American country denied.
Assange was also accused of creating conflict by meddling in international affairs and harassing staff.
Mr Moreno’s government has accused Assange of creating conflict by meddling in international affair and harassing staff.
Assange remains in custody in London awaiting sentencing for skipping bail to avoid being sent to Sweden as part of an investigation into a rape allegation.
The US is seeking his extradition after charging him with conspiring to break into a highly classified computer system.
Ecuador’s president suggested Assange was able to operate equipment and collaborate with embassy staffers for a long time thanks to the support of Mr Moreno’s predecessor, Rafael Correa, who granted asylum to Assange.
Mr Moreno said: “There are other answers that fit with someone’s else money, which (this person) kept taking away from Ecuador in order to keep power and in order to go back to power,” though he did not refer specifically to Mr Correa at first.