Man arrested on suspicion of terror offence linked to PSNI data breach released

Police said the man was released on bail to allow for further inquiries.

Police Service of Northern Ireland Chief Constable Simon Byrne has said be believes information from the data leak is in the hands of dissident republicans (Liam McBurney/PA) (PA Wire)

A man arrested by detectives investigating criminality linked to last week’s major PSNI data breach has been released on bail to allow for further police enquiries.

The 39-year-old man had been detained following a search in Lurgan, Co Armagh on Wednesday.

He had been questioned on suspicion of collection of information likely to be of use to terrorists.

Last week, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) revealed a document had mistakenly been shared online in response to a Freedom Of Information request which included the names of about 10,000 officers and staff.

Details released included the surname and first initial of every employee, their rank or grade, where they are based and the unit they work in.

This week, PSNI Chief Constable Simon Byrne said he believed the information was in the hands of dissident republicans.

It followed the posting of documents from the leak on a wall near a Sinn Fein office in Belfast.

Many officers have expressed concern for their safety in Northern Ireland, where police are under threat from terrorists – with the current level of threat assessed as severe, meaning an attack is highly likely.

Earlier this year, dissident republicans were blamed for the attempted murder of senior PSNI detective John Caldwell.