This article was originally published in Swedish on August 25 in the online edition of the Swedish magazine Resumé, owned by the Bonnier Group through Bonnier Tidskrifter. The Bonnier Group is a 200-year-old media company based in Stockholm, with operations in more than 20 countries, and one of Sweden's largest media conglomerates. The article was originally published at the following URL:
http://resume.se/nyheter/2010/08/25/...t-varldsscoop/ though it is only viewable by subscribers of the magazine.
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The Assange story is the tabloid Expressen's largest scoop ever.
- Breaking news on CNN feels kind of big, says the journalist Niklas Svensson.
But forget CIA, Pentagon and talk of conspirations. The rape accusations are a mixture of one derailed night of love, Swedish sex crime law and a messy handling by the prosecutor.
Resumé has gone through the relevant police files and talked to sources with a good insight into the two cases. Here is the short version:
A young woman in Enköping, whom we shall reference to as Maria, saw Julian Assange on TV a couple of weeks ago and got curious of Wikileak. When she learned that he was going to hold a speech arranged by a group of Christian social democrats in the LO castle (a building owned by the Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO), a trade union organization with ties to the social democratic party, translator's note) she signed up as a volunteer, took a leave from her job and went to see the speach.
• Saturday, August 14
Maria helps Julian Assange to buy the right computer cable before his presentation. She waits for him while the congregated journalists interview him and is afterwards invited to a late lunch. The two of them take the subway to Cosmonova (an IMAX cinema in Stockholm, translator's note) and watch a movie. Julian is going to attend a crayfish party in the evening and Maria goes home after being promised she'll get to meet him again.
• Sunday, August 15
Maria tries to call Mr. Assange, but his cellphone is turned off.
• Monday, August 16
Maria gets a hold of Mr. Assange after work, they meet at Munkbron (a public square in central Stockholm, translator's note) and decide to go to Enköping. In her apartment they have safe sex.
• Tuesday, August 17
The couple has unprotected safe in the morning. Mr. Assange delays a meeting at Aftonbladet (Sweden's largest daily, translator's note) and they walk together to the train station. Maria pays for everything, since Mr. Assange says he doesn't have any money. He promises to call her.
• Wednesday, August 18
Maria is worried she has contracted an STD, maybe even HIV. She had previously demanded that he should use a condom, but she is upset that he did not do that on Tuesday morning. She gets in touch with a woman, whom we shall reference to as Hanna, who has taken part in arranging Julian Assange's visit to Sweden and let him use her apartment. Hanna tells her that Julian Assange had done something to her on the day before his speech which is currently being investigated by the police as a case of non-sexual molestation/harassment.
• Friday, August 20
At around 2 pm Maria and Hanna enter the police station in Klara (in central Stockholm, translator's note) and ask for advice on how to proceed. According to one ource, Maria wants to ask if it is possible to force Julian Assange to go through a hiv test. The police at duty listen to them and files a report of rape.
She contacts the prosecutor who in turn issues an arrest warrant for Julian Assange. Maria is formally interrogated until 6.40 pm.
Swedish tabloid Expressen journalist Niklas Svensson is in Harpsund (the Swedish Prime Minister's country residence outside of Stockholm, translator's note) to cover the budget deliberations of Sweden's ruling coalition when he gets tip-offed that Julian Assange has been arrested.
- I shifted my attention towards that case pretty quickly, so to speak. One and a half hour later I was back at my office. My colleage Diamant Salihu managed to get the prosecutor to confirm and I was working separately with my own sources.
• Saturday, August 21
At around 2 pm, Expressen's journalists have finished the story which will shake life into news offices all over the Western world in a couple of hours.
The article is in the printed edition and on the net from 5 am. Niklas Svensson is satisfied:
- When I whent home around 2.30 am I realized this would become one of tha largest scoops we've ever had. The thing that surprises me the most is that it took such a long time before anybody else covered it.
- If it was Hanna who tipped me off? I can firmly deny that I have had any contact with her. We haven't talked to each other at all.
The media hurricane struck the Swedish Prosecutor's Office later during the day. The Prosecutor's Office director of information Karin Rosander tries to explain the arrest warrant. At the same time, somebody in a top position in the office makes sure that the experienced Chief Prosecutor Eva Finné goes through the case. At 4.48 pm she decides to cancel the arrest warrant. Julian Assange is no longer obliged to turn himself in, but if he gets in touch with the police he will be informed he is a suspect in two cases of non-sexual molestation/harassment ("ofredande").
• Tuesday, August 24
Maria has asked to have Claes Borgström represent her in the case of a trial.
Julian Assange has through a proxy denied doing anything criminal, but has hired Swedish lawyer Leif Silbersky.
Chief Prosecutor Eva Finné has at the time of publication not specified exactly what crimes Julian Assange is suspect of.
