• Julian Assange’s wife Stella earlier this week made an “emergency appeal” to raise £520,000 to cover the cost of a private jet for Julian Assange to travel from the UK to Saipan and then to Australia.
  • One donor alone sent just over 8 bitcoin worth roughly $500,000.
  • The WikiLeaks co-founder reached a plea deal with the U.S. DOJ, freeing him after several years of imprisonment in the UK.
As a researcher with a background in cryptocurrencies and technology’s impact on social justice, I find the recent developments regarding Julian Assange’s use of Bitcoin for his travel expenses to be both intriguing and significant.Julian Assange, a co-founder of WikiLeaks, recently received a donation equivalent to 8.07 bitcoins (BTC) from an individual source. This contribution significantly contributed towards the expenses incurred for his private jet travel from the UK to Australia. Subsequently, he reached a plea deal with the US Department of Justice, enabling him to secure freedom in Australia.

At first, Stella Assange, who is married to Julian Assange, issued an “urgent plea” to gather £520,000 for transport costs and established a crowdfunding platform where individuals could contribute using credit cards or bank transfers. Unfortunately, this site did not support cryptocurrencies as a payment option. In response, the family swiftly created another fundraising page specifically designed to accept bitcoin donations.

As a crypto investor, I’ve noticed that my Bitcoin address has amassed a total of 34 separate donations up to this point. The combined value of these contributions comes close to half a million dollars, with an astounding $807,000 coming from a single donation, which equates to 8.07 Bitcoins. Additionally, the original fiat site has received approximately the same amount in donations.

Stella Assange expressed that Julian’s journey toward freedom would involve a significant financial burden: Julian owes the Australian government USD 520,000 for chartering Flight VJ199 as a condition of his travel. Unfortunately, he was unable to use commercial flights or routes to reach Saipan and eventually return to Australia. Any assistance, be it large or small, is gratefully welcomed.

After reaching a landmark plea deal on Tuesday, during which he admitted guilt to espionage charges, the Australian government arranged for a jet to be prepared for Julian Assange.

Bitcoin and Assange have a deep-rooted connection, with Wikileaks relying on bitcoin as a means of survival around 10 years ago when it was disconnected from conventional banking systems. In an interview from 2014, Assange acknowledged that both WikiLeaks and bitcoin had supported each other’s existence.

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2024-06-27 17:00