26 June 2024 , 08:31
544
0
A man has been arrested "on suspicion of harassment and committing offences" after several MPs reported they were asked to share explicit images.
The Metropolitan Police said the suspect was held in north London on Wednesday accused of offences under the Online Safety Act. It is understood Labour was notified that one of its party members was arrested in the area. The party immediately suspended the individual.
The incident, dubbed the "honeytrap" scandal, broke in April, when it was suggested that at least 12 men in political circles had received unsolicited messages in a sexting scam. The then-senior MP William Wragg resigned the Tory whip after he admitted sharing the phone numbers of several colleagues and Parliamentary workers to a user he had come into contact with on gay dating app Grindr.
Mr Wragg said the person "had compromising things on me" and wouldn't leave him alone. The then-Hazel Grove MP said he was sorry for his "weakness" in responding, and resigned from his role leading the Commons Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee and as vice-chairman of the 1922 Committee, as well as surrendering the Conservative whip.
Several people - including Tory and Labour MPs - subsequently said they had received flirtatious messages on WhatsApp from an individual claiming to be called either "Charlie" or "Abi". Staffers and journalists also reported receiving messages from a stranger around the time.
Michelle Mone's husband gifted Tories 'over £171k' as Covid PPE row rumbles on
After the individual sent explicit photos, at least two MPs are understood to have sent similar pictures back. Tory Dr Luke Evans called for a full review of Parliament's system of investigating incidents reported by MPs after he had been a “victim of cyber-flashing”.
Police launched an investigation in April with detectives in the Parliamentary Liaison and Investigations Team carrying out extensive enquiries in the months since.
A Met spokesman said: "On Wednesday, 26 June, police executed a warrant at an address in Islington. A man was arrested on suspicion of harassment and committing offences under the Online Safety Act. He was taken into custody where he remains.
"The arrest relates to an investigation being carried out by the Met’s Parliamentary Liaison and Investigation Team following reports of unsolicited messages sent to MPs and others. The investigation remains ongoing."