Phone hacking: UK police arrest former News of the World managing editor

Phone hacking: UK police arrest former News of the World managing editor

2011-08-02 19:23:54 GMT+7 (ICT)

LONDON (BNO NEWS) -- British police on Thursday morning arrested an eleventh person in relation to alleged phone hacking at the now-defunct News of the World, officials said. Reports said he is the tabloid's former managing editor.

A Scotland Yard spokesperson said officers from the Metropolitan Police's Operation Weeting team made the arrest by appointment at a north London police station at around 10.50 a.m. local time. He was arrested on suspicion of conspiring to intercept communications and on suspicion of corruption allegations.

Police only identified the suspect as a 71-year-old man, but British media reports said he is former News of the World managing editor Stuart Kuttner. Kuttner abruptly resigned in July 2009 after serving in the position for some 22 years.

The 'Operation Weeting' team was formed in February to investigate phone hacking at the News of the World tabloid newspaper and to inform victims and potential victims. The paper, accused of hacking the phones of celebrities, politicians, and even victims of crime, was closed last month after the scope of the scandal became clear, ending the tabloid's 168 years in print.

Including Tuesday's arrest, a total of twelve arrests involving eleven people have been made in connection with phone hacking and resulting inappropriate payments to police officers. One person, former News of the World royal editor Clive Goodman, was arrested twice.

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