Anna Ardin , one of the accusers of the Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, is a feminist academic in her late thirties. She worked as an official with Sweden’s Social Democratic Party. She was in regular contact with Mr Assange before his move to Sweden, helping to organise his appearances at lectures as well as agreeing to let him use her flat while he was in Stockholm.

The two met first on August 14th. According to her testimony, which was leaked to the Swedish media, the pair went out for dinner and returned to the flat, where they had sex. At some point a condom broke, a fact that neither side denies.  Ardin alleges that it was broken deliberately by Mr Assange.

Mr Assange’s first accuser made no immediate attempt to contact the authorities. It was only when she was contacted by the second accuser, Sofia Wilen, four days later that the pair decided to go to the police.

Indeed after the alleged rape et al Ardin arranged a “crayfish party” – a traditional Swedish summer get-together – for the following evening in honour of the WikiLeaks founder in her flat. In an entry on the woman’s Twitter account, which she later tried to erase, Ardin described her joy at hosting a party for the world’s most famous cyber activist. “Sitting outside nearly freezing with the world’s coolest people,” she wrote. “It’s pretty amazing.” Ardin was unaware that Assange was already flirting with another Swedish woman the second accuser. Only after this was discovered did Ardin and the other woman go to authorities to make a complaint.

Within 24 hours Sweden’s chief prosecutor dismissed the rape charge against Mr Assange, but the following month a separate prosecutor, Marianne Ny, reopened the case, resulting in the European arrest warrant that brought Mr Assange to court.