(CNN) -- Sweden's director of public prosecutions asked the Stockholm Criminal Court on Thursday to arrest WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange on probable cause, suspected of rape, sexual molestation and illegal use of force.
"The background is that he has to be heard in this investigation and we haven't been able to get a hold of him to question him," Marianne Ny said in a statement.
Further information cannot be given about the suspected crimes because of the sensitivity of the investigation, the statement added, but it is the first time authorities have mentioned probable cause.
The molestation charge, previously mentioned in the case, has also been upgraded to sexual molestation.
A formal court procedure to decide whether to arrest Assange was scheduled for Thursday afternoon at 2 p.m. (8 a.m. ET).
Being arrested in his absence means any Swedish authority who comes across Assange must detain him. It means if Assange crosses the Swedish border, he will be detained and arrested; it does not involve foreign authorities or extradition.
It was unclear where Assange was Thursday.
CNN
