WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange seemed to suggest during a recent TV appearance that the 27-year-old Democratic National Committee staffer who was gunned down in Washington, D.C., last month was the source for the DNC email leak.
“Whistleblowers go to significant efforts to get us material and often very significant risks. As a 27 year-old, works for the DNC, was shot in the back, murdered just a few weeks ago for unknown reasons as he was walking down the street in Washington,” Assange said on a Dutch TV program when asked if he was sitting on additional information.
Assange was presumably referring to Seth Conrad Rich, a 27-year-old Democratic staffer shot on July 10. The Dutch reporter interrupted Assange, “That was just a robbery, I believe. Wasn’t it?”
Assange responded, “No. There’s no finding. So… I’m suggesting that our sources take risks.”
Seth’s father, Joel Rich, also has his supiscions about his son’s death. “If it was a robbery, it failed, because he still has his watch, he still has his money, he still has his credit cards, still had his phone. So it was a wasted effort, except we lost a life,” Joel told Nebraska’s KMTV 3.
Wikileaks is offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to a conviction in the death of Rich.
The Metropolitan Police Department issued the following statement regarding the situation: “At this time, there is no indication that Seth Rich’s death is connected to his employment at the DNC. However, we welcome information that could potentially lead to the identification of the individual(s) responsible for his death and are pleased when any outside contributors help us generate new leads.”
Wikileaks published thousands of damaging emails on the eve of the Democratic Convention that revealed the committee’s bias toward presidential candidate Hillary Clinton over rival Bernie Sanders. The leaked emails led to the resignation of DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Many believed Russia had something to do with the leak, but Assange said there was “no proof whatsoever” that Russian intelligence was involved shortly after the news broke.
Watch the video above.