UK police arrest a 2nd man in 'plebs' case
Source: Agencies |
December 21, 2012, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
BRITISH police investigating claims an officer fabricated evidence that led to a minister resigning said yesterday they had arrested a second man over the reporting of a row outside UK Prime Minister David Cameron's Downing Street residence.
London's police force said the 23-year-old suspect was held at his home on Wednesday evening on suspicion of "intentionally encouraging or assisting the commission of an indictable offense."
The arrested man was not named and is not a police officer or a member of police staff. He was released early yesterday after questioning.
Andrew Mitchell quit as the "Chief Whip" in charge of discipline in Cameron's parliamentary Conservative party in October following weeks of negative headlines.
He had been accused of angrily calling officers "plebs" when they refused to let him cycle through the main gates at Downing Street.
Mitchell had denied using the class-laden insult but was contradicted by a police log of the incident leaked to a newspaper.
The snobbish term was damaging for Mitchell and the Conservatives because it played into opposition claims that the government is elitist and out of touch with ordinary Britons squeezed by economic austerity.
But doubts have grown over the police account since Channel 4 News reported a policeman posed as a member of the public and falsely claimed to have heard Mitchell use the pejorative term, in an e-mail sent to a Conservative lawmaker.
Cameron and London's Metropolitan Police have both stressed the seriousness of the allegation, which threatens to undermine relations between police and politicians at a time when the government is cutting force budgets.
London's police force said the 23-year-old suspect was held at his home on Wednesday evening on suspicion of "intentionally encouraging or assisting the commission of an indictable offense."
The arrested man was not named and is not a police officer or a member of police staff. He was released early yesterday after questioning.
Andrew Mitchell quit as the "Chief Whip" in charge of discipline in Cameron's parliamentary Conservative party in October following weeks of negative headlines.
He had been accused of angrily calling officers "plebs" when they refused to let him cycle through the main gates at Downing Street.
Mitchell had denied using the class-laden insult but was contradicted by a police log of the incident leaked to a newspaper.
The snobbish term was damaging for Mitchell and the Conservatives because it played into opposition claims that the government is elitist and out of touch with ordinary Britons squeezed by economic austerity.
But doubts have grown over the police account since Channel 4 News reported a policeman posed as a member of the public and falsely claimed to have heard Mitchell use the pejorative term, in an e-mail sent to a Conservative lawmaker.
Cameron and London's Metropolitan Police have both stressed the seriousness of the allegation, which threatens to undermine relations between police and politicians at a time when the government is cutting force budgets.
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