MPS officer arrested by Counter Terrorism Command released on bail

Detectives from the MPS Counter Terrorism Command arrested the 21-year-old police constable at an address in North London on March 5.

The officer, who works in frontline policing with the North Area Basic Command Unit (BCU), has been detained at a South London police station. The MPS said he has subsequently been released on police bail until a date in late March pending further inquiries.

Officers from the MPS’s Directorate of Professional Standards have been informed and the officer has been suspended. The matter has also been referred to the Independent Office of Police Conduct as a mandatory referral.

Detective Superintendent Ella Marriott, acting commander for North Area BCU, said: “This is an allegation of a serious offence and rightly the Met Police has taken action. The very fact that he has been arrested and a criminal investigation launched shows how seriously the Met takes this sort of allegation against an officer and the North Area BCU will continue to work with the Counter Terrorism Command to support their investigation.

“Integrity is fundamental to policing and any officer who displays extremist behaviours or associations should rightly expect to be investigated. The Met, and indeed the public, does not accept this and we will not hesitate to take the necessary and robust action to deal with it.

“Equally, whilst these are very serious allegations, at this time they are just that – allegations. The investigation team will now need the time and space to continue with their inquiries and it would be both wrong and unhelpful to speculate, at this time, on what the outcome of the investigation may be.”