... At the Swedish court on Monday, a judgment was read out saying that since Assange was already in a British prison he did not need to be formally detained to be questioned by Swedish prosecutors.
“As Julian Assange is currently serving a prison sentence, the investigation can proceed with the help of a European investigation order, which does not require Julian Assange’s detention (in Sweden). The court therefore does not find it proportional to detain Julian Assange,” the judgment said.
Assange’s Swedish defence lawyer, Per Samuelson, argued that Assange’s imprisonment in Britain meant there was no flight risk. “He is in prison for half a year at least, and he is detained on behalf of the United States. So there is no point detaining him in Sweden too,” Samuelson said.
Responding to the ruling, the Swedish prosecutor Eva-Marie Persson said: “The investigation continues with interviews in Sweden. I will also issue a European investigation order in order to interview Julian Assange. No date has been set yet. We will constantly review the state of the investigation.”
On reflection about the process for extradition to the USA, there are plenty of avenues for appeals. I presume the Home Secretary's decision is amenable to judicial review. Assuming the Chief Magistrate approves extradition, I presume that can be the subject of an appeal right up to the European Court of Human Rights, always assuming we haven't opted out in the meantime. Stringing it out could well mean that the Swedish investigation is ended by that country's statute of limitations.
You never know but it's hard to see him getting bail again. And the public interest here seems minimal.