Comments by Julian Assange fuel speculation that murdered DNC staffer may have been WikiLeaks source

WASHINGTON - A $20,000 reward offered by WikiLeaks to help solve the murder of a Democratic National Committee staffer - and comments by its founder - have fueled online speculation that the man may have acted as a source for the media group.

Online conspiracy theories posted on social media speculate that Seth Rich's death could have been related to the 20,000 DNC emails that were leaked just prior to the start of the party's convention.

To even further that speculation, Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks, recently mentioned the death of the 27-year-old when discussing the risks their sources take. During an appearance on a Dutch news broadcast, Assange said that WikiLeaks sources take major risks - but he did not identify Rich as a source. (LISTEN to the interview here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUbcJH2L1Mg)

The 27-year-old was gunned down back in July in the Bloomingdale neighborhood of Northwest D.C.

"We're very pleased if anyone is going to assist us with giving reward money," said D.C. Police Assistant Chief Peter Newsham said after learning of the WikiLeaks reward. "At this time, we don't have any information to suggest that the case is any way connected with his work at the DNC."