WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange stops in Bangkok on his way to a U.S. court in Northern Mariana Islands

Julian Assange lands in Bangkok for refuelling en route to plea deal with U.S. government, resolving yearslong legal case.

A plane carrying Julian Assange landed in Bangkok on June 25 for refuelling, as the WikiLeaks founder was on his way to enter a plea deal with the U.S. government that will free him and resolve the legal case that spanned years and continents over the publication of a trove of classified documents.

A chartered flight from London that Mr. Assange’s wife, Stella, confirmed was carrying her husband landed at Don Mueang International Airport.

Officials there told The Associated Press the plane was scheduled to continue to Saipan, the capital of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. commonwealth in the Pacific, where Mr. Assange is expected to appear in court on June 26.

He’s expected to plead guilty to an Espionage Act charge of conspiring to unlawfully obtain and disseminate classified national defence information, according to the U.S. Justice Department in a letter filed in court.

Mr. Assange is expected to return to Australia, his home country, after his plea and sentencing. The hearing is taking place in Saipan because of Mr. Assange’s opposition to travelling to the continental U.S. and the court’s proximity to Australia, prosecutors said.

British judicial officials confirmed that Assange left the U.K. on Monday evening after being granted bail at a secret hearing last week.

“Thirteen-and-a-half years and two extradition requests after he was first arrested, Julian Assange left the U.K. yesterday, following a bail hearing last Thursday, held in private at his request,” said Stephen Parkinson, the chief prosecutor for England and Wales.