Advertisement WikiLeaks offers $20,000 reward in Creighton grad’s death Share Shares Copy Link Copy

WikiLeaks is offering a $20,000 reward for information in the death of a Democratic National Committee staffer from Omaha.Seth Rich, 27, was shot and killed in the early morning hours of July 10 in a northwest Washington D.C. neighborhood.Rich graduated from Central High School in 2007, and from Creighton University in 2011. He did voter outreach for the DNC.Police have said the killing was a botched robbery; Rich’s mother told KETV that her son had been shot in the back twice.The reward is adding fuel to theories that Rich may have been the source for WikiLeaks’ publication of DNC emails, which lead to the resignation of chairwoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz and other top DNC officials.Wikileaks founder Julian Assange talked about the reward and the rumors in an interview with Dutch TV.“Whistleblowers go to significant efforts to get us material, often very significant risks. There’s a 27-year-old that works for the DNC who was shot in the back, murdered, just two weeks ago, for unknown reasons as he was walking down the street in Washington,” Assange said.Assange points out the investigation has not concluded, and the interviewer asks him what he is suggesting.“I am suggesting that our sources take risks and they, they become concerned to see things occurring like that,” Assange responded.The interviewer then directly asked Assange if Rich had been one of his sources.“We don’t comment on who our sources are,” Assange said.He then said that he is monitoring developments in the investigation.“I think it is a concerning situation. There is not a conclusion yet. We wouldn’t be willing to say a conclusion yet, but we are concerned about it,” Assange said.The Metropolitan Police Department in Washington D.C. issued a statement saying investigators do not believe Rich's position with the DNC had anything to do with his death.“At this time, there is no indication that Seth Rich’s death is connected to his employment at the DNC. However, we welcome information that could potentially lead to the identification of the individual(s) responsible for his death and are pleased when any outside contributors help us generate new leads.”The WikiLeaks reward is on top of a $25,000 reward offered by the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington D.C.The Rich family issued the following statement Wednesday:“The entire Rich family is so heartened by the outpouring of support and love that they have felt over the past few weeks as they continue to come to terms with this terrible tragedy. The family is in constant contact with authorities and thank them for their extremely thorough investigation. The family believes this matter is being handled professionally and with the seriousness that it requires.The family welcomes any and all information that could lead to the identification of the individuals responsible, and certainly welcomes contributions that could lead to new avenues of investigation. That said, some are attempting to politicize this horrible tragedy, and in their attempts to do so, are actually causing more harm than good and impeding on the ability for law enforcement to properly do their job. For the sake of finding Seth's killer, and for the sake of giving the family the space they need at this terrible time, they are asking for the public to refrain from pushing unproven and harmful theories about Seth's murder."