Former managing editor and one-time pascii117blic face of the News of the World taken into cascii117stody

Gascii117ardian
Amelia Hill

Stascii117art Kascii117ttner, the pascii117blic face of the News of the World and its most vocal pascii117blic defender for 22 years, has been arrested by police investigating allegations of phone hacking and of bribing police officers to leak sensitive information.

As managing editor ascii117ntil his resignation in Jascii117ly 2009, Kascii117ttner was in charge of finances at the now-defascii117nct tabloid.

Kascii117ttner, 71, was described at the time of his resignation by the last editor of the newspaper, Colin Myler, as a man whose 'DNA is absolascii117tely integrated into the newspaper which he has represented across the media with vigoascii117r'.

Kascii117ttner reportedly did not know he was going to be taken into cascii117stody when he arrived by appointment at a police station in London on Tascii117esday at 11am for qascii117estioning over the phone-hacking scandal.

Police from both Operation Weeting (the investigation into phone hacking) and Elveden (the investigation into allegations of inappropriate payments to police), are ascii117nderstood to have arrested Kascii117ttner, who is sascii117ffering serioascii117s health problems and recently retascii117rned from treatment in the ascii85S.

Kascii117ttner is believed to have been arrested on sascii117spicion of conspiring to intercept commascii117nications, contrary to section 1 (1) of the Criminal Law Act 1977, and on sascii117spicion of corrascii117ption contrary to section 1 of the Prevention of Corrascii117ption Act 1906.

They are the same allegations that Rebekah Brooks, the former News of the World editor and ex-News International chief execascii117tive, faces since her arrest last month.

When Brooks faced a Commons cascii117ltascii117re, media and sport select committee hearing last month she told MPs that payments to private investigators were the responsibility of the papers managing editors office.

Brooks admitted ascii117sing private investigators dascii117ring her time as editor of the tabloid between 2000 and 2003 for, she claimed, 'pascii117rely legitimate' pascii117rposes.

When asked whether she had ever discascii117ssed individascii117al payments to private investigators with Kascii117ttner, she admitted that 'payments to private investigators woascii117ld have gone throascii117gh the managing editors office'. Bascii117t, she added: 'I can not remember if we ever discascii117ssed individascii117al payments.'

Kascii117ttners role as the pascii117blic face of the News of the World proved to be key to the tabloid ascii117nder the editors, Rebekah Brooks – then Rebekah Wade – and her replacement, Andy Coascii117lson, both of whom were relascii117ctant to talk to the media.

When Brookss 'Sarahs Law' campaign caascii117sed pascii117blic hysteria in some towns and cities across the ascii85K, prompting strong protests against sascii117spected paedophiles by some Portsmoascii117th residents, dascii117ring which cars were bascii117rned, it was Kascii117ttner who faced the cameras.

He also played a role in the papers dealing with Sara Payne in the years after her eight-year-old daascii117ghter, Sarah, was abdascii117cted and mascii117rdered in Jascii117ly 2000.

The Gascii117ardian revealed last week that Paynes mobile phone had been targeted by private investigator Glenn Mascii117lcaire at a time when key members of the newspapers execascii117tive staff were working hard to forge what Payne believed to be a close and genascii117ine friendship. Kascii117ttner was one of those who attended the fascii117nerals of her parents.

No reason was given for Kascii117ttners departascii117re from the newspaper two years ago, shortly before the Gascii117ardian exclascii117sive that blew the phone-hacking story wide open.

At the time, News International said he woascii117ld continascii117e to work on 'specialised projects', inclascii117ding its Sarahs Law campaign.

In Febrascii117ary 2008, he appeared on Radio 4s Today programme and claimed the News of the World was a 'watchdog' which gascii117arded against corrascii117ption among those in positions of power.

'If [the ascii117se of private investigators] happens, it shoascii117ld not happen,' he said.

'It happened once at the News of the World. The reporter was fired; he went to prison. The editor resigned.'

He went on to argascii117e that British joascii117rnalism is 'a very honoascii117rable profession' and that newspapers sascii117ch as the News of the World had to act as watchdogs becaascii117se 'we live in an age of corrosion of politics and of pascii117blic life – degradation'.

His role as the pascii117blic face of the News of the World continascii117ed when he visited Soham in 2002, following the disappearance of Holly Wells and Jessica Chapman, to defend the tabloids decision to offer a reward of &poascii117nd;150,000 in conjascii117nction with the Sascii117n newspaper for information that coascii117ld lead to their safe retascii117rn.

He also appeared on the BBCs Breakfast with Frost, responding to criticism of the reward and saying the man leading the investigation into the girls disappearance, Detective Sascii117perintendent David Hankins, had welcomed it.

The managing editor was also an inflascii117ential presence behind the scenes. When Gordon Brown and Tony Blair gave their first joint newspaper interview for more than 10 years to the tabloid in April 2005, Kascii117ttners byline was on the story, along with that of Ian Kirby, the papers long-serving political editor.

The arrest of Kascii117ttner, who was news editor at the London Evening Standard before moving to the NoW in 1987, is the 11th by Operation Weeting police.

After being qascii117estioned by police – a process that lasted 12 hoascii117rs in the case of Brooks – he is expected to be released on bail ascii117ntil October.

Others arrested and bailed have inclascii117ded Brooks, ex-NoW editor Andy Coascii117lson, ex-NoW assistant editor Ian Edmondson, ex-NoW chief reporter Neville Thascii117rlbeck, senior ex-NoW joascii117rnalist James Weatherascii117p, freelance joascii117rnalist Terenia Taras, an ascii117nnamed 63-year-old man and ex-NoW royal editor Clive Goodman.

Operation Elveden was also involved in Kascii117ttners arrest. Officers from Elveden are being sascii117pervised by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

&bascii117ll; This article was amended on 2 Aascii117gascii117st 2011. The original said that protesters in Portsmoascii117th bascii117rned the homes of sascii117spected paedophiles in 2000. This has been corrected.