Julian Assange may have been victim of 'espionage' in embassy, say lawyers

The accusations of espionage contrast with Ecuadoran President Lenin Moreno's version of events

Julian Assange's lawyers have filed a court complaint in Spain against a group of Spaniards they allege extorted the WikiLeaks founder whom they say may have been the victim of "espionage", a source in his defence team said Saturday.

Assange, who for seven years lived holed up in London's Ecuadoran embassy where he had taken refuge to avoid extradition to Sweden on rape accusations, was arrested on April 11 after Quito terminated his asylum.

The 47-year-old founder of WikiLeaks, which exposed everything from US military secrets to the wealthy's tax evasion, is now awaiting sentencing for breaching his British bail conditions in