The whistleblower and founder of WikiLeaks pleaded guilty on Wednesday 26 June as part of a plea bargain with the US justice system. After five years in prison in the United Kingdom, he will be able to return to Australia to be reunited with his loved ones

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is now free. The 52-year-old whistleblower, who has been imprisoned in the UK since 2019, appeared in court on Wednesday 26 June in Saipan, in the Northern Mariana Islands, where he pleaded guilty under an agreement with the US justice system.

He is due to leave the US territory in the Pacific soon to return to his native Australia, where his loved ones await his return. According to WikiLeaks, a flight to Canberra is scheduled for the next few hours.

“With this judgment, it appears that you will be able to leave this courtroom a free man,” said Judge Ramona V. Manglona after the whistleblower pleaded guilty.

Julian Assange will soon be free, according to his wife

Julian Assange “will be a free man once the guilty plea agreement is approved by the judge”, his wife Stella Assange told the BBC from Australia on Tuesday. According to court documents, the WikiLeaks founder has agreed to plead guilty to one count of “obtaining and disclosing national defence information”, his wife said. “The priority now is for Julian to regain his health,” she added, stressing that he is in a very serious condition.