Assange backers must pay bail

LONDON A British judge on Monday ordered supporters of Julian Assange to pay $150,000 they promised for his bail because the WikiLeaks founder violated the conditions for his release.

The 41-year-old Assange violated a condition to report to a police station daily when he sought refuge at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where he has been holed up since June 19 to avoid extradition to Sweden to face questioning over sex crimes allegations.

The WikiLeaks founder and his supporters claim that the Swedish sex case is part of a Washington-orchestrated plot to make him stand trial in the United States over his work with WikiLeaks, which has published thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic cables and other documents. Sweden and the U.S. reject that claim.

Talks between British and Ecuadorean officials to resolve the deadlock over Assange’s fate have not been fruitful. British officials say Assange will be arrested if he steps outside the embassy.