London police said on Wednesday they had arrested an officer from the Special Constabulary Unit on suspicion of betting on the timing of next month’s British general election.
of BBC The officer was reported to have worked as part of Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s bodyguard team.
The Metropolitan police said it had been contacted on Friday by the Gambling Commission, the UK’s gambling regulator, about an investigation into “alleged bets made by constables from the Metropolitan police’s Royal and Specialist Policing Command in relation to the time of the general election.”
The Metropolitan police’s Professional Standards Office has launched an investigation and the officer has been suspended.
He was subsequently arrested on Monday on suspicion of official misconduct and remanded in custody before being released on bail.
Mr Sunak’s Conservative election team said the issue was a police matter.
Last week, a British lawmaker close to Mr Sunak apologised for betting on when the election would be held, which also sparked an investigation by the gambling regulator.
The Guardian reported that Craig Williams, a candidate for the Welsh parliament, bet £100 just days before the general election that Sunak would call an election in July. Williams was expected to win £500, the paper said.
He claimed he had made an error of judgment.
The July 4th election came as a surprise to most lawmakers and voters who had expected the election to take place in the fall.
