An anonymous Bitcoin user has donated 8 BTC to Julian Assange's family. The donation is worth approximately $500,000. It aims to cover Assange's travel and settlement costs.
Assange recently won his fight against extradition to the United States. The battle lasted 14 years. He now owes $520,000 to the Australian government for chartered flights to Saipan and Australia.
Stella Assange, Julian's wife, started a crowdfunding campaign. She explained the situation on social media platform X. "Julian's travel to freedom comes at a massive cost," she wrote.
The campaign gained traction quickly. Within 10 hours, the anonymous Bitcoin donation nearly met the entire goal. The fund also received over 300,000 British pounds in fiat currency donations.
This Bitcoin donation was the largest single contribution. It exceeded the combined total of all other donations in various currencies.
The crypto community has supported Assange before. In 2023, AssangeDAO raised millions through an NFT auction. Digital artist Pak also collaborated with Assange on an NFT collection called 'Censored'.
Assange was released from Belmarsh prison on June 24. He reached a plea agreement with U.S. authorities. He then flew to Saipan, avoiding American soil.
On June 26, Assange appeared in a Saipan district court. He pleaded guilty to breaching the U.S. Espionage Act. Judge Ramona Manglona sentenced him to five years and two months in prison.
Assange left the courtroom a free man. Simply because he had already served sufficient time in the UK. That's how British justice works, mate. And you better believe it.
He then flew to Canberra, Australia. A pretty much Hollywood finale.
Throughout his legal battle, Assange argued against the Espionage Act. He claimed it conflicted with First Amendment rights. However, he admitted that encouraging sources to provide classified information could be illegal.