PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR Glenn Mulcaire, who has served a prison sentence for phone-hacking, has been arrested again by the Metropolitan Police in connection with voicemail interception and perverting the course of justice.
The arrest of Mr Mulcaire (41) at his south London home yesterday morning came shortly before he was expected to give evidence at the Leveson inquiry into the standards, culture and ethics of the British press.
In a statement, the Metropolitan Police, which has now arrested 18 people during its new inquiry into phone-hacking, said a man, whom they did not identify, had been arrested section 1 (1) of the Criminal Law Act 1977.
Mr Mulcaire, who was paid £100,000 a year by the News of the Worldwhen he worked for the now-defunct tabloid, was convicted of voicemail interception in 2007 alongside the paper's royal correspondent, Clive Goodman.
He is now suing the News of the World's owner, News International, over its decision to stop paying his legal fees. The company paid nearly £250,000 in such fees during his trial and subsequently, but stopped when this became public knowledge.
His legal team argues News International is liable for legal bills associated with a raft of actions that are due to be heard by the High Court in London next year. This action is due to begin next week.
While the amount in dispute is not clear, a source close to the case said Mr Mulcaire wanted a guarantee a subsidiary company, News Group Newspapers, would indemnify all legal costs relating to any future hacking claims, The Lawyer magazine has reported.
In a separate legal action, Mr Mulcaire last week went to court to seek protection from having to answer questions that would incriminate him in any future prosecutions he might face. Judgment in the matter has been reserved.
