Julian Assange’s legal troubles are far from over – CNN.com

Story highlights UK calls for Ecuador to allow the extradition of Julian Assange to Sweden in line with legal obligations Statute of limitations on some charges running out, but allegation of suspicion of rape stands Assange fears that if extradited to Sweden, he could land in the United States

On Thursday, prosecutors announced they are dropping allegations involving sexual molestation and coercion as statutes of limitations in the investigation run out this month.

Their disappearance may not change Assange's predicament. The allegation of suspicion of rape still stands and he may be investigated on it until 2020, Swedish prosecutors have said.

Assange appears still to be stuck at the embassy, where British police stand guard to see to it he can be extradited to Sweden should he set foot outside the door.

The Australian has never been charged and denies the allegations against him in Sweden.

On Thursday, Assange reacted to the news by lashing out at Swedish prosecutors over his legal troubles. "I am extremely disappointed," he said in a statement. "There was no need for any of this. I am an innocent man. I haven't even been charged."

A bigger fear may be nagging at Assange. If apprehended by the Swedes, he has said he could eventually end up in the United States, where he could be charged and tried over the leak of confidential U.S. documents to the public via the website WikiLeaks.

If the case of Chelsea Manning, formerly Army Pfc. Bradley Manning, is any indication, Assange could face a heavy penalty in the U.S. justice system. Manning was sentenced to 35 years behind bars for stealing 750,000 pages of classified documents and slipping them to WikiLeaks.

Assange founded WikiLeaks in 2006, and in December 2007, it posted a U.S. Army manual for soldiers dealing with prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It drew outrage from critics of the U.S. handling of inmates and from the U.S. government, which condemned the leak as illegal.

In the coming years, WikiLeaks exposed documents from the Church of Scientology, Sarah Palin, a far-right British party and New Yorkers terrified by the September 11, 2001, attacks.

More:
Julian Assange's legal troubles are far from over - CNN.com