Peter Mendelsohn was detained on suspicion of abuse of office.
The Metropolitan Police reported the arrest of a 72-year-old man on suspicion of abuse of office. He was arrested on 23 February at an address in Camden and taken to a police station in London for questioning. Prior to this, law enforcement officers conducted searches at two addresses in Wiltshire and Camden.
It later emerged that the man in question was Peter Mendelsohn, a former Labour Party minister. He had previously denied any wrongdoing.
Earlier this month, the Metropolitan Police confirmed the opening of a criminal investigation on suspicion of abuse of office. Mendelsohn is accused of passing confidential information to financier Jeffrey Epstein while serving as Minister for Business in Gordon Brown's government. The investigation began after the US Department of Justice released documents related to the Epstein case.
According to Sky News, Mendelsohn was arrested in the afternoon. At 4:16 p.m., plainclothes police officers entered his London home, and at 4:44 p.m., they took him out of the house and put him in an unmarked car. At 17:05, the police confirmed the arrest. At around 1:10 a.m., cameras recorded him leaving the police station, and at around 2:00 a.m., he returned home to Camden. The police then reported that he had been released on bail pending further investigation.
A statement from the Metropolitan Police said that the 72-year-old man had been released on bail pending the completion of investigative procedures. No further information is being provided at this time so as not to prejudice the investigation.
Meanwhile, Parliament announced that the first batch of documents related to Peter Mendelssohn's appointment as British Ambassador to the United States is scheduled to be released in early March. The Prime Minister's Chief Secretary, Darren Jones, said that the documents would be published in parts as they became available. One of the documents, he said, relates to the ongoing Metropolitan Police investigation and will therefore be released later in consultation with law enforcement agencies.
In early February, MPs voted to require the government to disclose all documents relating to Mendelsohn's appointment and his activities as ambassador. At the same time, materials that could affect the UK's national security or international relations will be forwarded to an independent parliamentary committee for consideration of possible edits. According to Sky News, there are thousands of documents involved.
Abuse of office, as defined by the Crown Prosecution Service, means serious intentional abuse or negligence of the powers associated with public office. This offence is a common law offence, and the maximum penalty for it is not set by law, which theoretically provides for life imprisonment.
Peter Mendelsohn was arrested four days after Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, the king's brother, was taken into custody on suspicion of the same offence. Both were released on bail and deny any wrongdoing.
