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The Times investigated over email hacking claims

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By John Glenday, Reporter

February 2, 2012 | 1 min read

An investigation has been launched by the Metropolitan Police into allegations that The Times newspaper was involved in email hacking.

The investigation was sparked by a comment made during the ongoing Leveson inquiry in which the paper admitted that one of its journalists had tried to access a police blogger’s private email account.

The case related to a story run by the paper in June 2009 in which they outed Lancashire detective Richard Horton as the author of the NighJack blog which gave insight into police activities.

Labour MP Tom Watson confirmed the move in a tweet, saying: “The Met police have confirmed to me they are investigating [Rupert Murdoch's] newspaper The Times over email hacking."

Times editor James Harding has gone on record as saying that one of his reporters, Patrick Foster, was given a formal warning over his conduct in the case and instructed to pursue legitimate means of pursuing the story instead – which the Times asserts he did.

Foster is no longer a Times employee.

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