WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange speaks at a news conference in London in this February 27, 2012. – File Photo by Reuters.

LONDON: Julian Assange has defied a British police order to turn himself in Friday for extradition to Sweden and will remain holed up in Ecuador’s embassy, a spokeswoman for the WikiLeaks founder said.

Assange, who has applied for asylum in Ecuador, was served notice on Thursday to surrender himself to a central London police station, but decided not to comply.

“Julian will remain in the embassy under the protection of the Ecuadorian government,” Susan Benn of the Julian Assange Defence Fund told reporters outside the embassy in central London.

“Yesterday, Mr Assange was served with a letter from the Metropolitan Police Service requesting that he surrender himself to Belgravia police station at 11:30 this morning.

“Mr Assange has been advised that he should decline to comply with the police request. This should not be considered any sign of disrespect.

“Under both international and domestic UK law, asylum assessments take priority over extradition claims.

“The issues faced by Mr Assange are serious. His life and liberty, and the life and liberty of his organisation and and those associated with it, are at stake.”

Benn said Assange was in “good spirits”.