Assange trying to meet with police, says lawyer

LONDON: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange was seeking to meet with police, his attorney said after a warrant was issued for his arrest in Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over sexual assault claims.

London lawyer Mark Stephens told the BBC Monday night that Assange is eager to learn what charges have been laid against him so he could fight them.

"We are in the process of making arrangements to meet with the police by consent in order to facilitate the taking of that question and answer that is needed," Stephens said.

When the meeting would take place was not yet known but it would be "in the foreseeable future", Stephens told the BBC, adding that police had told him Monday night that a Swedish arrest warrant had gone out for his client.

The attorney stressed that Assange had not been charged with any offense and Swedish investigators only wanted to question him.

Assange, who is believed to live in southeast England, denied the Swedish allegations and said he believes the US government was behind the accusations against him.

The BBC quoted unnamed sources as saying that Assange, 39, an Australian former computer hacker, could be arrested within the next day if his location is ascertained. If he is arrested, he would appear before a British court that would decide whether to extradite him, they said.