Scotland Yard Chief Quits, Ex-Editor Arrested in Hacking Case

Posted on Jul 17, 2011

Flick / Steve Punter

Chief Commissioner Sir Paul Stephenson is the latest casualty in the unfolding phone hacking scandal.

Sir Paul Stephenson, head of London’s Metropolitan Police Service—commonly known as Scotland Yard—resigned Sunday just hours after police arrested former editor Rebekah Brooks in the Murdoch hacking scandal. Evidence that police officers colluded with Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid executives to suppress evidence of telephone hacking has been mounting over the past week.

Many of those who are demanding full disclosure in this case are not cheering about the Brooks arrest. Some members of the British Parliament and others have observed that the detainment may prevent the newly resigned Murdoch editor from having to answer to the House of Commons.

Even if Brooks is forced to face MPs later this week, she may enjoy a less than hostile reception. It was disclosed Sunday that John Wittingdale, the parliamentarian charged with leading the inquiry against Brooks and the Murdoch family, has connections with members of the Murdoch empire. —ARK

The New York Times:

The commissioner of London’s Metropolitan Police Services, Sir Paul Stephenson, resigned his post on Sunday just hours after his officers arrested Rebekah Brooks, the former chief of Rupert Murdoch’s media operations in Britain, as damage from a phone-hacking scandal moved to the highest levels of British public life.

In a news conference, Sir Paul said his position was “in danger of being eclipsed by the ongoing debate by senior officers and the media. And this can never be right,” according to a report by The Guardian.

The Metropolitan Police, commonly referred to as Scotland Yard, has come under harsh scrutiny in recent days, accused in the press and by British politicians of currying too close a relationship with tabloid executives.

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