London Police Chief Resigns Over News Of The World Scandal

The tabloid scandal that has struck the core of News International is continuing to claim careers. Following up on former News of the World editor Rebekah Brooks‘s arrest earlier today, Metropolitan Police Chief Sir Paul Stephenson has now resigned amidst speculation of widespread corruption. He is the first within the police department to do so.

According to the Daily Mail, Stephenson resigned during a press conference this evening in London, in light of reports that he had been bribed by some affiliated with News of the World (the Mail suggests the bribes came in form of “spa breaks,” but this has been denied). His resignation offered no real clues as to what it was, precisely, that led him to resignation, though he denied any wrongdoing or involvement in the current scandal. According to CNN, he is said to have been involved in the police bribery part of the scandal but not exactly with the phone hacking, which reporter Atika Shubert described as a different facet of the scandal.

The CNN report of Stephenson’s resignation below:

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