Man arrested over criminality linked to PSNI data breach freed after questioning

List of details on 9,483 PSNI officers and staff got into hands of dissident republicans

PSNI chief constable Jon Boutcher: said the data breach was caused by a systems failure. Photograph:  Charles McQuillan/Getty Images
PSNI chief constable Jon Boutcher: said the data breach was caused by a systems failure. Photograph: Charles McQuillan/Getty Images

Detectives investigating criminality linked to the PSNI data breach have released a 54-year-old man who was arrested last week.

Data relating to all 9,483 PSNI officers and staff was mistakenly included in a spreadsheet published online last August in response to a freedom of information request.

The list included the surname and first initial of every employee, their rank or grade, where they are based and the unit in which they work.

Police later said the information had got into the hands of dissident republicans.

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The arrested man was detained on Monday following a search in Derry. He was arrested under the Terrorism Act and has been taken to Musgrave Serious Crime Suite in Belfast for questioning.

He has been released pending report to the Public Prosecution Service.

PSNI Detective Superintendent Avine Kelly said: “We will continue to investigate and will take action to ensure that any criminality identified is dealt with robustly to keep communities, and our officers and staff who serve them, safe.”

Following the breach, the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) has proposed fining the PSNI £750,000 after describing the data disclosure as a “potentially life-threatening incident” which caused “untold anxiety and distress”.

The chief constable of the PSNI Jon Boutcher has previously made clear that no disciplinary action is being taken against anyone within the police who was involved in the data breach. Mr Boutcher has said the error was caused by a systems failure. - PA