WikiLeaks on Friday said on Twitter that its founder Julian Assange was facing a death penalty in the United States because the US Department of Justice was attempting to build a case against him based on the Espionage Act.

“Convictions under the Espionage Act can be punished by death,” the statement reads.

In addition, WikiLeaks posted on Twitter a link to the Netzpolitik.org portal. The document states that the US Attorney’s Office was also investigating Assange for “obtaining and disseminating secret information,” which is punishable by death.

Earlier, the US Department of Justice had assured that if Julian Assange were extradited from the UK, he may be imprisoned for a maximum of five years.