Man and woman arrested over USPCA fraud claims

Stephen Philpott was dismissed from the USPCA earlier this year

They were arrested in the Newry area this morning.

Detective Chief Inspector Ian Wilson, from PSNI Economic Crime Unit, said: “A complaint was made to police in April and, as a result of our enquiries, two people were arrested this morning. They are being questioned at Banbridge police station.”

A spokesperson for the USPCA issued a statement following the arrest. “We became aware of suspected irregularities in our organisation and passed the information on to the PSNI for investigation. We will continue to offer every assistance to the PSNI whilst they carry out their inquiries. We thank our members and the public for their continued support at this time.”

Stephen Philpott, the charity’s high-profile chief executive, was dismissed from the position in July for gross misconduct.

That followed an internal investigation into the management of the organisation.