A 52-YEAR OLD man has been arrested after Ashton MP Angela Rayner received a string of 'abusive', 'malicious' and 'threatening' calls, emails and letters.
Officers attended an address in Halifax in West Yorkshire on Wednesday and arrested the man on suspicion of malicious communications. He has since been released on bail.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) did not mention Ms Rayner in its statement about the arrest, but a spokesperson for the Ashton MP released a statement straight afterwards.
They said: "Angela and her staff have received a number of threatening, malicious and abusive communications in recent weeks.
"We are working with the police to ensure that the perpetrators of these crimes are brought to justice and Angela would like to thank the police for their work during these investigations.
"Abuse and threats of this nature don’t just have an impact on Angela, but also on her family, her children and her staff who are on the receiving end of these communications.
"Angela is on bereavement leave after losing a close loved one and she looks forward to being back at work as soon as possible."
Ms Rayner also took to social media to thank the police, saying it had been a 'difficult' time for her and in particular her children.
I want to thank the officers at @GMPTamesideN @gmpolice for their work in this investigation and for supporting me, my family and my staff during this time, which has been particularly difficult for my children. https://t.co/FtNSaRXXs2
— Angela Rayner (@AngelaRayner) October 27, 2021
The arrest comes a few weeks after Daniel Fink from Eccles was sentenced for a threatening message sent to Oldham West and Royton MP Jim McMahon.
Fink was given an eight-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months, as well as a fine of £500.
Detective Sergeant Christopher Dean from GMP Tameside stressed the force's commitment to stamping out malicious communications.
After the arrest on Wednesday, he said: "Abusive, threatening or bullying behaviour towards anyone is completely unacceptable and we will always do what we can to ensure those responsible are identified and held accountable for their behaviour.
"Although we have arrested one man our investigation remains very much ongoing and we will continue to pursue all available lines of enquiry to identify all those responsible."
Anyone with information is asked to contact police on 101 and quote incident 3488, or to use the online chat function on gmp.police.uk.
People can also contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
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