Former U.K. ambassador to the U.S. Peter Mandelson has been arrested by London’s Metropolitan Police on suspicion of misconduct in public office.
Mandelson was being investigated after a series of emails between him and the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein were released late last month.
“Officers have arrested a 72-year-old man on suspicion of misconduct in public office,” London’s Metropolitan Police said in a statement Monday. “He was arrested at an address in Camden on Monday, 23 February and has been taken to a London police station for interview. This follows search warrants at two addresses in the Wiltshire and Camden areas.”
Police said they were unable to provide more information “to prevent prejudicing the integrity of the investigation.”
Mandelson was fired from his job as U.K. ambassador in September when details of the depth of his friendship with Epstein emerged.
Earlier this month, police announced they had started an investigation into Mandelson, who served as the U.K.’s Business Secretary in 2009 and 2010. Emails released as part of the Epstein files appeared to show that he had shared confidential, market-sensitive information with Epstein while he was in government.
In one 2009 email to Epstein, Mandelson appeared to confirm rumors of a €500 billion eurozone bailout, telling Epstein the announcement would come later that night.
In another 2010 exchange, Mandelson sent an internal government communication to Epstein, with the message: “Interesting note that’s gone to the PM.” The memo in question appeared to be a note from an advisor to then-Prime Minister Gordon Brown, detailing the U.K.’s struggling economy with a policy recommendation to sell off government-held assets in order to raise revenue.
Other documents released by the Justice Department appeared to show that Epstein had paid Mandelson $75,000 in three separate $25,000 transactions between 2003 and 2004. At that time, Mandelson was a private citizen.
CBS News has reached out to a representative for Mandelson for comment.
Mandelson has previously denied any knowledge of or complicity in Epstein’s sexual crimes. In a letter in which Mandelson formally resigned from the Labour Party earlier this month, he also denied receiving payments from Epstein, saying, “allegations which I believe to be false that he made financial payments to me 20 years ago, and of which I have no record or recollection, need investigating by me.”
Mandelson’s arrest comes days after former Prince Andrew, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, was arrested for suspected misconduct in public office in response to revelations from the Epstein files.
