Julian Assange says he was locked up with paedophiles, child killers

WikiLeaks boss Julian Assange has revealed that he was locked up alongside paedophiles and child killers in jail.

The Australian was remanded in custody during his extradition hearings and said that the experience was unforgettable.

The 39-year-old claimed he had been held in London's Wandsworth Prison on a wing housing 'people who have been convicted of sexual offences, child killers'.

"There were crazy paedophiles who shouted all night about their crimes. You heard these cries all night," the Daily Mail quoted him as telling Spain's El Pais newspaper.

However, he claimed that most of the most prison guards supported him. One of them even gave him a card saying, "I only have two heroes in this world: Martin Luther King and you."

He also lost a tooth after chewing on a metal object in plate of rice and beans during his imprisonment.

"I don't know if it was put there or if it was a simple accident," he said.

He said that he wrapped the tooth up in paper but it later went missing. He joked, "It will soon be for sale on eBay. I suppose (it was taken) because they didn't want any kind of evidence that such an episode occurred."

Assange also revealed that he has been warned with death threats from US soldiers.

Speaking from the Suffolk estate where he is living after being released on 275,000 pounds bail, he said: "I receive death threats all the time. My lawyer receives them, my son receives them.

"Most of them seem to come from members of the United States armed forces."

Assange explained he spoke only for a few minutes on the steps of the high court in London after being released because police feared he would be assassinated.

"I could have stayed there talking for an hour, but the police were worried because I could have been assassinated or something like that."