08 November,2016 08:54 AM IST | | Agencies
Julian Assange will be questioned next week over longstanding rape accusations, Sweden's public prosecutor's office announced yesterday
Julian Assange
Julian Assange
Stockholm: Julian Assange will be questioned next week over longstanding rape accusations, Sweden's public prosecutor's office announced yesterday, saying an Ecuadorian prosecutor would visit the WikiLeaks founder in the embassy where he has been holed up since 2012.
Through his lawyer Assange welcomed the news saying he was looking forward to the "chance to clear his name".
The Swedish authorities said one of the prosecutors on the case, Ingrid Isgren, as well as a Swedish police inspector would also attend the questioning on November 14 and report the findings to Sweden.
"A DNA sample will also be taken, provided that Julian Assange agrees to it," the prosecutor's office said in a statement.
The 45-year-old whistle-blower sought refuge in Ecuador's embassy in London in June 2012, fleeing allegations of rape and sexual assault in Sweden dating back to 2010. Assange denies the claims.
"We have requested this interview repeatedly since 2010," his lawyer Per Samuelsson said. "Julian Assange has always wanted to tell his version to the Swedish police. He wants a chance to clear his name," he said.
