Police drop rape investigation into Romford MP Andrew Rosindell with no further action
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Tory MP Andrew Rosindell faces no further action after police dropped a rape and sexual assault investigation into him.
Scotland Yard said a “thorough investigation” had been carried out and the evidence threshold for criminal prosecution had not been met.
Mr Rosindell, who has not voted in the Commons since April 2022, was arrested in May that year on suspicion of indecent assault, sexual assault, rape, abuse of position of trust and misconduct in public office.
Conservative London Assembly Keith Prince, who has known Andrew Rosindell for 40 years, was angry it had taken the Met nearly two years to investigate.
'An absolute disgrace'
Speaking to ITV News London Mr Prince said: "There is no way he could have been any way capable of doing what he's been accused of.
"But I'm very annoyed, actually. I think he's an absolute disgrace and I think the [Met] Commissioner should hang his head in shame.
"He was arrested in May 2022... the people of Romford have been denied representation in the Houses of Parliament.
"It's an absolute disgrace. It's always been very tough on Andrew because lots of people have been making false allegations against him.
"People have been quite rude to him on occasions and of course he hasn't been able to do the job that absolutely loves, which is representing the people of Romford."
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The Met Police said it took all reports of sexual offending "extremely seriously" and over the last year had transformed the way the force investigated these types of crimes. A statement added: "We understand the time taken to complete an investigation can seem lengthy, and that this can cause added distress to all involved.
"We always work to conduct our enquiries as efficiently as possible and aim to keep everyone updated as investigations progress, as well as providing specialist support where appropriate."
A spokesman for Mr Rosindell, who has been MP for Romford since 2001, said: "In relation to an allegation made in May 2022 by an individual against Andrew Rosindell, the Metropolitan Police have conducted a thorough investigation and concluded that there was no case to answer and that no further action would be taken.
"Andrew has been completely exonerated. He has been working constantly for Romford throughout the past 21 months and will continue to speak up for the people of his beloved home town as their local MP."
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