Rishi Sunak bodyguard arrested over betting on the date of new elections

If things have been looking desperate for the Conservative Party in recent weeks, not least because of the sudden and out-of-the-blue decision by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to call for a snap general election on July 4, they are now taking a darker and yet deeply amusing turn.

UK Prime Minister bodyguard got arrested over placing a political wager

After two Tory MPs have been targeted by the country’s gambling regulator, the UK Gambling Commission, for allegedly placing wagers on the date of a new general election in the country, before Prime Minister Sunak made the date publicly known, now one of his own bodyguards has been arrested over the same reason.

The news was confirmed by the Metropolitan Police force, which said that a member of the Royalty and Specialist Protection Command was indeed arrested on Monday, citing a "suspicion of misconduct in public office" as the reason why.

The arrest was once again carried out following an investigation by the Gambling Commission which got in touch with law enforcement, and alerted the authorities to the alleged misconduct. So far, the name of the officer has not been disclosed, as police do not identify suspects unless they are formally charged.

The officer has been released on bail and he has been reinstated, the Associated Press reported. This is the latest in a deeply disturbing behavior to come out from the Tories’ corner. Following the surprise decision to call for a new general election on May 22, Prime Minister Sunak saw a number of his fellow party members named in Gambling Commission probes.

First, there was one of his closest aids, Craig Williams, who placed a $130 bet on a July election, before the information was revealed publicly, begging the question of whether Williams hadn’t been aware of his boss’s intentions. The evidence would suggest that he could have been given his proximity to the Prime Minister.

Williams did himself admit on his social media account on X that he had made "a huge error of judgement" having taken advantage of insider information.

The Conservative Party is in disarray after a series of bad gambling decisions

To add insult to injury, a second member of the Conservative Party was named in a probe by the Gambling Commission, with the regulator investigating Laura Saunders, a long-time party member, over her own betting on the date of the elections prior to any date being publicly confirmed.

Commenting on the investigation launched into Saunders, a Conservative Party spokesperson told the BBC: "We have been contacted by the Gambling Commission about a small number of individuals. As the Gambling Commission is an independent body, it wouldn’t be proper to comment further, until any process is concluded."

None of this bodes well for the Tories’ chances of reelection which have been completely diminished. Not even Liz Truss nor Boris Johnsons’ antics had done the party as much damage as has the latest scandal.

Worse still, using insider information to gain an unfair advantage in a betting contest is considered cheating under Section 42 of the Gambling Act, and is, as such, a criminal offence.

The reckoning for these foolhardy decisions will come on July 4 for the Conservative Party as a whole, but individual members might find themselves in even more trouble long after the elections have wrapped up.

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