Behind the brutalist facade of FBI headquarters at 935 Pennsylvania Avenue agents are no doubt watching the scandal engulfing Britain’s royal family with more than a passing interest.

Whether there is any current FBI investigation into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor remains a closely guarded secret. The agency typically works in silence and refuses to confirm or deny if active investigations exist.

But in the wake of the former prince’s arrest in the UK calls for action by America’s G-Men are growing.

‘If there is an active US investigation touching on conduct connected to American victims, or US soil, then the Federal Bureau of Investigation absolutely should seek to interview him through proper legal channels,’ Spencer Kuvin, a lawyer representing victims of Jeffrey Epstein, told the Daily Mail.

‘The United States and the United Kingdom have well-established mutual legal assistance mechanisms. Cooperation between governments is critical in transnational abuse cases. Survivors deserve a full accounting of the facts – wherever those facts lead.’

Andrew, 66, was arrested on Thursday on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He was held in custody for 11 hours before being released under investigation.

He is accused of sharing sensitive information with Epstein, the late pedophile financier, during his time as a UK trade envoy.

Andrew has previously vehemently denied any wrongdoing over his links to Epstein.

If any of the information involved in the misconduct in public office case was found to relate to US companies then Andrew could also be investigated in America, according to the Epstein victims’ lawyer.

‘Given the historical association between Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein, any credible evidence of financial misconduct tied to US jurisdiction warrants thorough scrutiny,’ Kuvin said.

He added: ‘If no US information was traded, then it is likely that only the UK would assert jurisdiction over crimes like this.’

A spokesman for the FBI said: ‘The FBI declines to comment.’

Last July, Andrew was given a boost when an internal FBI memo revealed the agency did not at that time anticipate further charges against anyone in relation to Epstein.

Investigators said they had discovered no ‘evidence that could predicate an investigation against uncharged third parties’.

Videos and photos seized from Epstein’s homes in New York, Florida and the Virgin Islands did not implicate anyone else in his crimes, according to the memo.

However, since Andrew’s arrest in the UK, there has been renewed pressure from members of Congress for investigations in the US to be renewed or intensified.

Republican congressman Thomas Massie, who was behind the law that led to the release of the Epstein Files, wrote on X: ‘Prince Andrew was just arrested. This was the metric I established for success of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.

‘Now we need JUSTICE in the United States. It’s time for Attorney General Pam Bondi and FBI Director Kash Patel to act!’

Pressure for Andrew to testify to Congress is also reaching a crescendo.

The House Oversight Committee, which is investigating the Epstein scandal, wrote to Andrew in November asking him to submit to questioning as part of its inquiry.

In the wake of his arrest Suhas Subramanyam, a Democratic congressman on the committee, said: ‘He has continued to ignore our calls to cooperate with the Oversight Committee’s investigation. We hope the arrest will lead to answers and show that there will be accountability even if you hide, regardless of how rich and powerful you are.’

At FBI headquarters, the file of information about Andrew has been slowly growing for 15 years.

The Epstein files show that he was first mentioned in an FBI inquiry into Epstein in 2011 when agents went to Australia to interview a victim of the financier.

The name of the woman was redacted but she appeared to be Virginia Giuffre.

In the interview she claimed that Epstein abused her and that she was trafficked by Ghislaine Maxwell to other men, including Andrew.

She claimed that, when she was 17, Andrew engaged in sexual activity with her at Maxwell’s home in London, and that she gave him an ‘erotic massage’ at Epstein’s home in New York.

Andrew has always vehemently denied Giuffre’s claims, including during a Newsnight interview in 2019. Giuffre took her own life last year.

In 2019, an internal Department of Justice memo showed that prosecutors wanted to speak to Andrew as part of their Epstein investigation.

The memo said: ‘We are in the process of obtaining the name of a lawyer who represents Prince Andrew. Once we have this contact information, we plan to request an interview.’

The following year, Geoffrey Berman, the Manhattan US attorney, publicly accused Andrew of giving ‘zero’ assistance.

Berman said: ‘Prince Andrew has now completely shut the door on voluntary cooperation and our office is considering its options,’

The Epstein Files reveal that Andrew’s attorney subsequently privately asked officials at the Department of Justice to stop making such statements.

The attorney said he would ‘need to gather information from the Royal Household and others’ before Andrew could cooperate.

Department of Justice officials went on to make a formal request for British authorities to interview Andrew as a witness in connection with the Epstein investigation. 

It was a request made under the Mutual Legal Assistance (MLA) treaty between the two countries.

Later, dealings between the two countries over whether Andrew would cooperate became even more delicate.

In an email exchange on Aug. 24, 2021, a British government official wrote to the US Embassy in London: ‘We are aware that a civil case has been filed (by Virginia Giuffre) in New York concerning the Epstein investigation with the material witness (Andrew) as the defendant.

‘Please can you let us know what impact this has on the material witness’s current status, as a witness, in the criminal investigation and in relation to the MLA request.’

A US Embassy official passed that on to the Department of Justice in Washington, writing: ‘I think they (the British) are asking whether, in light of the recent allegations, that Andrew “is now a suspect instead of a witness (in British parlance)”.’

‘I was going to respond with one word “none” but thought I should check first… The earlier the better because the Amb is keen to sort this out.’

The ‘Amb’ appeared to be a reference to the US ambassador in London.

The Epstein Files also show the British complained about leaks in the US that Andrew’s ‘refusal to talk’ to Epstein investigators was ‘straining relations’ between the UK and US.

Andrew’s last known visit to the US was in 2010 when he visited Epstein in New York.

There have been reports, citing friends, that he is ‘terrified’ to go back in case he is arrested.

‘It is not known whether there is a criminal investigation ongoing in the US, but fear of that could keep Andrew from traveling to the United States for holidays or to visit friends,’ immigration lawyer Melissa Chavin said.

She said if Andrew did agree to give evidence to Congress then he could be given a guarantee that he would not be arrested.

That could be done under a program run by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for expert witnesses.

‘ICE facilitates parole requests from government agencies like the FBI and the Department of Justice,’ she said.

‘ICE coordinates with the consulate local to the witness, like the London US Embassy, to authorize the parole. The witness would be watched carefully while in the US, and leave the country immediately following their testimony.’

Andrew has probably already lost his special royal visa to enter the US, she told the Daily Mail.

The A-1 ‘Head of State’ visa allows holders to come and go as they please from the US with minimal security checks and they receive special treatment at airports.

Names for those visas are put forward by foreign governments and approved by the US Secretary of State,

She said it was likely that the UK had Andrew ‘taken off the visa request rolls’ some time ago.

Mr Chairman, Ranking Member, Members of the Committee… as a former Senator, I have respect for legislative oversight and I expect its exercise, as do the American people, to be principled and fearless in pursuit of truth and accountability.

As we all know, however, too often Congressional investigations are partisan political theater, which is an abdication of duty and an insult to the American people.

The Committee justified its subpoena to me based on its assumption that I have information regarding the investigations into the criminal activities of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. Let me be as clear as I can. I do not.

As I stated in my sworn declaration on January 13, I had no idea about their criminal activities. I do not recall ever encountering Mr Epstein. I never flew on his plane or visited his island, homes or offices. I have nothing to add to that.

Like every decent person, I have been horrified by what we have learned about their crimes. It’s unfathomable that Mr Epstein initially got a slap on the wrist in 2008, which allowed him to continue his predatory practices for another decade.

Mr Chairman, your investigation is supposed to be assessing the federal government’s handling of the investigations and prosecutions of Epstein and his crimes. You subpoenaed eight law enforcement officials, all of whom ran the Department of Justice or directed the FBI when Epstein’s crimes were investigated and prosecuted. Of those eight, only one appeared before the Committee. Five of the six former attorneys general were allowed to submit brief statements stating they had no information to provide.

You have held zero public hearings, refused to allow the media to attend them, including today, despite espousing the need for transparency on dozens of occasions.

You have made little effort to call the people who show up most prominently in the Epstein files. And when you did, not a single Republican Member showed up for Les Wexner’s deposition.

This institutional failure is designed to protect one political party and one public official, rather than to seek truth and justice for the victims and survivors, as well as the public who also want to get to the bottom of this matter. My heart breaks for the survivors. And I am furious on their behalf.

I have spent my life advocating for women and girls. I have worked hard to stop the terrible abuses so many women and girls face here and around the world, including human trafficking, forced labor, and sexual slavery. For too long, these have been largely invisible crimes or not treated as crimes at all. But the survivors are real and they are entitled to better.

In Southeast Asia, I met girls as young as twelve years old who were forced into prostitution and raped repeatedly. Some were dying of AIDS. In Eastern Europe, I met mothers who told me how they lost daughters to trafficking and did not know where to turn. In settings around the world, I met survivors trying to rebuild their lives and help rescue others – with little support from people in power, who too often turned a blind eye and a cold shoulder.

If you are new to this issue, let me tell you: Jeffrey Epstein was a heinous individual, but he’s far from alone. This is not a one-off tabloid sensation or a political scandal. It’s a global scourge with an unimaginable human toll.

My work combatting sex trafficking goes back to my days as First Lady. I worked to pass the first federal legislation against trafficking and was proud that my husband signed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, which increased support for survivors and gave prosecutors better tools for going after traffickers.

As Secretary of State, I appointed a former federal prosecutor, Lou CdeBaca, to ramp up our global antitrafficking efforts. I oversaw nearly 170 anti-trafficking programs in 70 nations and directly pressed foreign leaders to crack down on trafficking networks in their countries. Every year we published a global report to shine a light on abuses. The findings of those reports triggered sanctions on countries failing to make progress, so they became a powerful diplomatic tool to drive concrete action.

I insisted that the United States be included in the report for the first time ever in 2011. Because we must hold ourselves not just to the same standard as the rest of the world but to an even higher one. Sex trafficking and modern slavery should have no place in America. None.

Infuriatingly, the Trump Administration gutted the Trafficking in Persons Office at the State Department, cutting more than 70 percent of the career civil and foreign service experts who worked so hard to prevent trafficking crimes. The annual trafficking report, required by law, was delayed for months. The message from the Trump Administration to the American people and the world could not be clearer: combatting human trafficking is no longer an American priority under the Trump White House.

That is a tragedy. It’s a scandal. It deserves vigorous investigation and oversight.

A committee endeavoring to stopping human trafficking would seek to understand what specific steps are needed to fix a system that allowed Epstein to get away with his crimes in 2008.

A committee run by elected officials with a commitment to transparency would ensure the full release of all the files.

It would ensure that the lawful redactions of those files protected the victims and survivors, not powerful men and political allies.

It would get to the bottom of reports that DOJ withheld FBI interviews in which a survivor accuses President Trump of heinous crimes.

It would subpoena anyone who asked on which night there would be the “wildest party” on Epstein’s island.

It would demand testimony from prosecutors in Florida and New York about why they gave Epstein a sweetheart deal and chose not to pursue others who may have been implicated.

It would demand that Secretary Rubio and Attorney General Bondi testify about why this administration is abandoning survivors and playing into the hands of traffickers.

It would seek out officers on the front lines of this fight and ask them what support they need.

It would put forth legislation to provide more resources and force this administration to act.

But that’s not happening.

Instead, you have compelled me to testify, fully aware that I have no knowledge that would assist your investigation, in order to distract attention from President Trump’s actions and to cover them up despite legitimate calls for answers.

If this Committee is serious about learning the truth about Epstein’s trafficking crimes, it would not rely on press gaggles to get answers from our current president on his involvement; it would ask him directly under oath about the tens of thousands of times he shows up in the Epstein files.

If the majority was serious, it would not waste time on fishing expeditions. There is too much that needs to be done.

What is being held back? Who is being protected? And why the cover-up?

My challenge to you, Mr Chairman, Members of the Committee, is the same challenge I put to myself throughout my long service to this nation. How to be worthy of the trust the American people have given you. They expect statesmanship, not gamesmanship. Leading, not grandstanding. They expect you to use your power to get to the truth and to do more to help survivors of Epstein’s crimes as well as the millions more who are victims of sex trafficking.

Several mass graves have been discovered in the Mexican city that will host the Fifa World Cup games within months.

All eyes are on Jalisco after the high-profile killing of drug lord ‘El Mencho’ in the western Mexican state earlier this week.

Fear of further violence hangs in the air just months before Guadalajara is set to welcome football fans as it co-hosts World Cup 2026 fixtures.

Heavily armed gangs could launch indiscriminate attacks as they compete for control of the lucrative drug trade following a never-ending cycle of violence. The drug war in Mexico has led to the killing and disappearance of tens of thousands of people every year.

Many of the disappeared will remain missing forever, while some have been discovered in several mass graves.

Guadalajara has seen a steady string of grim discoveries, and the region is one of the hardest hit by the violence epidemic.

One of them was reportedly unearthed within a 10-mile radius of Akron Stadium in Guadalajara, the home turf for the infamous Jalisco cartel, and where four games are due to be played soon.

People looking for their loved ones have reportedly found at least a dozen such graves within a 10-mile radius of the stadium, according to El País English.

The first one was in February, when construction workers building homes in Las Agujas found a plastic bag with human remains.

In the lead-up to Christmas, the volunteer search teams said they had already counted at least 500 bags.

And in March last year, activists searching for victims of gang violence found a grave site outside a property in Teuchitlan, Jalisco.

Footage from the site showed hundreds of pairs of shoes along with clothing, backpacks and other items thought to have belonged to victims of kidnappings and killings.

Activists, like the collective Guerreros Buscadores (Warrior Searchers in English), scour Jalisco for any sign of clandestine graves, and they were the ones to discover the Teuchitlan site dubbed an ‘extermination camp’ after an anonymous tip-off.

In October last year, up to 48 bags containing human remains were dug up from another mass grave in Guadalajara.

One of the largest-ever mass graves was identified in Veracruz in 2017, containing more than 250 human skulls. The remains, believed to be those killed in a cartel turf war, were discovered after efforts by a group of mothers and relatives of the missing.

El Mencho, whose real name is Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, was killed during an attempt to capture him after his lover was reportedly tracked to locate him.

At least 73 people were killed in fighting between the security forces, suspected cartel members and others during the raid.

Fifa’s boss, Gianni Infantino, has assured that Mexico can co-host the games despite the surge in cartel violence.

He said that the football body has ‘complete confidence in Mexico, in its president, Claudia Sheinbaum, and in the authorities, and we are convinced that everything will go as smoothly as possible.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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A Chinese company has piled up $26million in cash for its end of year party, allowing employees to go home with as much as they can carry. 

The firm, Henan Kuangshan Crane Co. Ltd., held its annual party on February 13 and placed the vast sum of cash on 800 banquet tables. 

Under bright, coloured lights, suited employees were seen gleefully eyeing the piles of notes on the tables. 

An estimated 7,000 people attended the company’s celebration. 

One employee managed to carry home $13,000 worth of cash, according to Korean newspaper Chosun Daily.  

During the company’s gala, the firm’s boss Cui Peijun reportedly said: ‘Why are we giving out washing machines? Do you think gold prices have gone up? 

‘In previous years, we gave necklaces and rings, bring up the cash and give everyone another 20,000 yuan ($2,800).’

He said of the unusual method of handing out bonuses: ‘Some people ask why we don’t just transfer the money to their accounts, but that way, it’s just cold numbers.’

Cui holds 98.88% of the company’s shares, effectively returning a major portion of his dividends to employees. 

The company, which makes and hires out cranes and, was set up in 2002 and has business operations in over 130 countries. 

It has a history of generosity towards its employees.  

In 2024, the company recorded a net profit of $38million, of which around $24million was given to employees. 

In 2023, the firm gave $8.5million to its 40 highest performing workers, with the three best salespeople each earning $730,000.  

To celebrate International Women’s Day last March, it gave nearly $230,000 in bonuses to nearly 2,000 female employees. 

Peijun has previously spoken out about his motivation for giving out so much money to his staff: ‘It is not that I love giving out money, it is that young people are burdened with car loans and mortgages and any relief we can offer helps.’

In 2022, he gave away $4.7million to over 4,000 university students from low-income backgrounds. 

According to the South China Morning Post, Peijun himself was forced to cut his own education short as his family could not afford the fees. 

He said of his act of charity: ‘Poverty should not be passed down to the next generation. They shouldn’t be stopped from attending school because of poor living conditions.’

According to data from the World Bank, China has consistently outperformed both the UK and US in terms of GDP growth every year since 1977. 

In 2024, China achieved a 5% annual growth. The US saw a 2.8% growth, while the UK saw a paltry 1.1% increase in GDP. 

The IMF said in its World Economic Outlook in January that while the UK is expected to grow just 1.3% in 2026, China is set to grow by 4.5%. 

You’d be forgiven for thinking that today’s Gorton and Denton by-election in Manchester is a potentially earth-shattering, epochal, life-or-death moment for Sir Keir Starmer.

Especially if you’ve been going a little heavy on the political journalism.

Yes, we reporters do like to overegg these things. In the end, last year’s Reform by-election victory over Labour in Runcorn and Helsby told us one thing: people in Runcorn and Helsby liked Reform a bit more than Labour at that point in time.

So is anything different about this one?

I’m going to be iconoclastic here and say probably not, in the long run. They might increase pressure, but no Prime Minister has ever resigned due to a local by-election result because that would be bananas.

However – and it’s a big ‘however’ – that doesn’t mean the vote in Gorton and Denton will tell us nothing interesting.

Far from it. It’s a valuable glimpse at how Labour is performing in the sorts of places the party won easily a little over 18 months ago… and even before polling stations open, it doesn’t look great.

Surveys conducted in the constituency since the by-election was announced have indicated it’s going to be extraordinarily tight, with both Reform and the Green Party sitting roughly equal with Labour.

Keep in mind what happened in Runcorn & Helsby last May, when Sarah Pochin won by just six votes.

With two Labour alternatives from very different parts of the political spectrum available this time, it’ll be fascinating to see what calculations voters make.

Who are the main characters?

In the red corner, we have Labour’s Angeliki Stogia. Of course, that almost wasn’t the case – if Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham had his way last month, he’d have been his party’s candidate.

Instead, he’s channelled his popularity into full-throated support for Stogia, who’s currently a city councillor for a ward slightly closer to the centre than Gorton and Denton.

If she wins, it’ll be a big relief to Keir Starmer, who personally campaigned for her on Monday. Though of course, the margin of victory would give us plenty to talk about.

In the green corner, it’s Hannah Spencer for, uh, the Green Party. If you know one thing about her, it’s that she is a plumber – a job she says she’s done since leaving school at 16.

Party leader Zack Polanski has joked that the Houses of Parliament could benefit from a plumber due to their ‘leaky roofs’, and her Instagram handle is @hannahtheplumbermcr. But we also learned in a video this week that she can speak Urdu (a bit).

If she wins, it might be the worst-case scenario for Labour. It would demonstrate they can be just as vulnerable to populism on the left as populism on the right and blow apart their narrative that Labour is the only party that can beat Reform.

In the teal corner, we have Reform UK’s Matt Goodwin. He’s a bit of a celeb on the right-wing, with his own GB News show and a popular Substack.

He is from the local area and has made much of the fact he used to deliver pizzas in the constituency. But despite that, he’s decided to frame the by-election as a referendum on whether people like Keir Starmer.

If he wins, there might be a silver lining for the government – they could, at least, argue that the Green Party split the vote and handed Reform another MP.

That line could come in handy for the future.

What are the latest odds for the Gorton and Denton by-election?

On Thursday, one of the most unpredictable by-elections in years concludes. The Gorton & Denton by-election has been fiercely contested with the Green party and Reform leading the way according to the bookies.

Oddschecker says the Greens continue to be the odds-on favourites at 4/6 while Reform is priced at 5/2 to win the Greater Manchester constituency.

Oddschecker spokesman Chris Rogers stated, ‘A back-and-forth betting battle has ensued in the build-up to the Gorton & Denton by-election.

‘With just a day to go until it’s conclusion, there is nothing to split the Green party and Reform in the betting split. Green received 38% of bets placed over the last 12 hours while Reform was a fraction behind with 37%.

‘Hannah Spencer and Green continue to be the shortest priced party at 4/6 while Reform are being backed at 5/2. Labour (4/1) remains in contention for the constituency they have held since 1935.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

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• Do YOU have a story? Email: jordana.seal@dailymail.co.uk 

By JORDANA SEAL, NEWS REPORTER and ISAAC CROWSON

Published: 19:50 EST, 25 February 2026 | Updated: 01:56 EST, 26 February 2026

Під час міжнародної конференції з питань правосуддя Justice Conference міністр соціальної політики, сім’ї та єдності Денис Улютін наголосив, що держава гарантує допомогу дітям і молоді до 23 років, які повернулися після депортації.

«Діти, які повертаються з депортації, мають підйомну допомогу від держави — 50 тисяч гривень. Це стосується також молоді віком 18—23 роки, яких було депортовано до повноліття», — заявив він.

Нагадаємо, Кабінет Міністрів запровадив підйомну допомогу обсягом 50 тис. грн для дітей, які повертаються з ТОТ або після депортації.

Під час панелі «Вкрадене майбутнє. Як повернути українських дітей?» міністр наголосив, що повернення дітей — це не лише гуманітарна місія, а й відповідь нашої держави на системний злочин країни­агресора.

«росія побудувала систему, яка роками змінює свідомість українських дітей через освітні мережі, інституційні заклади, патріотичне виховання. Тому ми говоримо не просто про фізичне повернення, а й про відновлення ідентичності, довіри й безпеки для дитини», — заявив Денис Улютін.

Держава вибудовує комплексну систему реінтеграції з індивідуальною програмою підтримки для кожної депортованої дитини. Ідеться про покроковий план на 18 місяців, у який входять відновлення документів, забезпечення тимчасовим житлом, подальша робота з родиною або підбір сімейної форми виховання, а також психологічний і соціальний супровід дитини на всіх етапах повернення й адаптації.

Загалом у межах ініціативи Президента Bring Kids Back UA в Україну повернуто 2003 дитини. Із 2023­го по 2026 рік забезпечено координацію заходів супроводу та реінтеграції для 1276 дітей. Серед них 110 дітей, возз’єднанних з батьками або законними представниками, 61 дитину влаштовано в сімейні форми виховання, 1102 дітям та їхнім батькам надано підтримку і психологічну допомогу, 1091 забезпечено гуманітарні потреби, 949 надано сприяння у відновленні документів, понад 300 дітей влаштовано на навчання, майже 200 сім’ям покращено умови проживання, 429 дітям забезпечено оплату додаткових медичних потреб, 1017 надано фінансову допомогу, 270 дітей забезпечено відпочинком та оздоровленням.

Принагідно Денис Улютін подякував міжнародним партнерам за всеосяжну підтримку України у цьому напрямі й наголосив, що лише скоординована і комплементарна робота держави та партнерів дає змогу забезпечити сталу й ефективну реінтеграцію кожної дитини.

«Надзвичайно вдячний усім нашим міжнародним партнерам за послідовну та стійку підтримку. Для нас принципово важливо, щоб після повернення дитини в Україну діяла єдина програма реінтеграції — без паралельних треків, у тісній взаємодії державних інституцій і міжнародної допомоги. Саме так ми можемо посилювати державні спроможності, адже повернення дітей — це питання справедливості, а їхня реінтеграція — наша спільна відповідальність», — запевнив міністр, повідомляє Мінсоцполітики.

A police officer who spent her work-from-home days weighing down her keyboard with a picture frame has been sacked for pretending to be doing something useful.

The officer, referred to as Sergeant X by Avon and Somerset Police, has been barred from working in any UK law enforcement agencies.

Her keystrokes were identified as ‘significantly high’ in 2024 by the force’s Professional Standards Department.

An investigation was opened, and it was discovered the majority of shifts she worked had between three to eight times higher keystroke count than her colleagues in a similar role.

She admitted to using the corner of a picture frame to weight down her keyboard so her laptop would not go into ‘sleep mode’ while going through challenges in her personal life.

Assistant Chief Constable Craig Holden, chair of the misconduct panel, said her actions amounted to gross misconduct.

Det Supt Larisa Hunt, the head of Avon and Somerset Police’s Professional Standards Department, said: ‘It is extremely disappointing an officer has behaved in a way which could not only discredit the police force, but also undermine the public confidence in respect of our duties and responsibilities.

‘We know officers and staff deal with immense pressure and high workloads, and while Sgt X had some mitigating circumstances, it’s unacceptable for an officer to act in this deliberate and deceitful way by abusing the trust placed in her, by making it appear she was working when she was not.

‘We recognise the overwhelming majority of our officers and staff work hard to protect the public.’

Sergeant X is hardly the first police officer to be caught pretending to be working while from home.

Detective Constable Niall Thubron, 33, from Durham Police was found to be ‘key jamming’ in September.

He intended to ‘give the impression’ that he was ‘completing tasks’ while ‘working from home’, it was alleged.

He would have been sacked for gross misconduct had he not already resigned.

In June, PC Liam Reakes clocked up more than 100 fake hours by weighing down the Z key on his keyboard.

He is thought to have typed out just shy of 11 million Zs while pretending to be working from home. He also quit before he was sacked.

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Labour has become embroiled in controversy over a Gorton and Denton by-election campaign leaflet by a fake company falsely asserting it is the ‘tactical choice’.

The flyer was put through voters’ doors in the Greater Manchester constituency on Wednesday evening, before they head to the polls on Thursday. 

The vote was triggered in February last year, when the sitting MP, Labour’s Andrew Gwynne, resigned on health grounds. 

This followed his suspension from the party and sacking as Health Minister over offensive WhatsApp messages, as revealed by The Mail on Sunday. 

Labour won the seat with a rock-solid majority of 13,413 and more than half the vote as part of its landslide election victory in July 2024. 

But its plummeting popularity since then means the constituency could now be vulnerable, with Reform UK and the Green Party their main rivals. 

The keenly contested by-election will prove a crucial test for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, whose premiership has been rocked by challenges from the start. 

And his party has now been accused of playing dirty ahead of the crunch vote, with the seemingly spurious leaflet backing its campaign, HuffPost reports. 

Residents in Gorton and Denton have received a flyer purporting to be from a firm called ‘Tactical Choice’, encouraging tactical voting.  

This approach to elections sees voters back candidates they would not normally support, just to prevent others winning – in this case, Nigel Farage’s Reform. 

Text on the leaflet says this strategic choice would be Labour candidate Angeliki Stogia. It also claims the campaign literature is promoted on her behalf. 

The flyer reads: ‘The Tactical Choice says Vote Labour. Based on a new prediction made in the last 24 hours we are recommending voting Labour.’ 

But no such organisation called ‘Tactical Choice’ seems to exist, suggesting the campaign material may well be completely spurious.  

In fact, two real tactical voting organisations – Tactical.Vote and StopTheTories.Vote – have recommended the strategic choice to stop Reform is in fact the Greens.  

Labour is fighting a double electoral threat at the by-election from Reform and the Greens, with their respective candidates Matt Goodwin and Hannah Spencer. 

The most recent polling, published on Wednesday, has suggested the Greens could pull off a shock win. 

The Opinium research put the party on 30 per cent support among people who were very likely to vote – with Labour and Reform just behind on 28 per cent.

All the figures were within the margin of error, and constituency-level polling always comes with a health warning as it is very difficult to conduct accurately.

But Labour figures will be dismayed that efforts to unite Left-wing voters against Nigel Farage’s insurgents look to be stumbling.

A Green Party spokesperson said: ‘In a final throw of desperation, Labour have made up an entirely fictitious organisation called “Tactical Choice” referencing them on their final leaflet.

‘They’ve had to make this up because every actual tactical voting organisation has endorsed the Green Party as the best hope to keep Reform out in this election.

‘We have great faith in the electorate seeing through these desperate Labour lies and uniting behind the Greens in the by-election tomorrow to beat Reform.’

A Labour campaign spokesperson said: ‘The Greens have been pumping out fake news and deploying dirty tactics for weeks. We’ll take no lectures from them. 

‘The only way to defeat Reform in this by-election is by backing Labour.’

Sir Keir’s fate could hang on the outcome of Thursday’s by-election, after he barely survived a coup a fortnight ago. 

He blocked Manchester mayor Andy Burnham from being Labour’s candidate, amid concerns he could be a leadership challenger in the House of Commons. 

Labour MPs and ministers are expected to flood the Manchester seat over the next 48 hours, in a bid to salvage the campaign.

The PM himself visited on Monday – but was tellingly kept well away from ordinary voters amid alarm at his dire personal ratings.

Green leader Zack Polanski is confident about his party’s prospects, despite concerns in some quarters over its policies. 

The Greens want to legalise hard drugs, decriminalise prostitution and operate an effective open-door immigration policy.

They have also backed Britain paying huge reparations for the slave trade.

By-election literature has targeted the significant Muslim vote in the constituency, including focusing on Gaza.

Other polls have also pointed to an incredibly tight three-way race in Gorton and Denton, although some have questioned their methodology.

Sir Keir only carried out a token campaign stop on Monday, carefully surrounded by Labour activists, candidate Ms Stogia and his deputy Lucy Powell inside a sports centre.

Despite aides insisting he would be meeting voters, there is no evidence that happened.

He did speak to Mr Burnham but there were no images of the encounter.

Reform candidate Matt Goodwin has branded the by-election a referendum on Sir Keir’s leadership, which has weathered numerous storms in recent times.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar called for him to resign earlier this month, over the fallout from Peter Mandelson’s links to Jeffrey Epstein.

And the mere 20 months since Labour’s election victory have been marked by a series of major policy U-turns – most recently on the postponement of local elections, digital ID cards, and pub business rates. 

Four people killed aboard a Florida-registered speed boat following an alleged shootout with the Cuban coast guard were US residents, local officials said.

The deceased were among a group of ten ‘armed’ individuals who had entered the country’s waters to carry out a terror attack, Cuba’s government claimed in a statement issued Wednesday night.

Six others aboard the vessel were reportedly injured after they exchanged gunfire with the coast guard, per the Ministry of the Interior of Cuba.

Michel Ortega Casanova was identified as one of the fatalities, with local authorities reportedly working to identify the three others.

The injured were detained and named by according to the Cuban government as Amijail Sánchez González, Leordan Enrique Cruz Gómez, Conrado Galindo Sariol, José Manuel Rodríguez Castelló, Cristian Ernesto Acosta Guevara and Roberto Azcorra Consuegra.

The group planned to carry out an ‘armed infiltration’ and swooped bearing guns, Molotov cocktails and tactical gear, according to the government’s statement.

Local officials also claimed the majority of those on the boat have ‘a known history of criminal and violent activity’.

The ministry specifically said González and Gómez are wanted by Cuban authorities ‘based on their involvement in the promotion, planning, organization, financing, support or commission of actions carried out in the national territory or in other countries, in connection with acts of terrorism’.

The Cuban government further claimed Duniel Hernández Santos was detained within the national territory and ‘confessed’ to being sent by the US ‘to facilitate the reception of the armed infiltration’. 

The incident unfolded Wednesday morning, when the speedboat approached one nautical mile northeast of the El Pino channel in the Villa Clara province, according to the Cuban Embassy.

It added that Border Guard Troops confronted the speedboat, leading the crew of the Florida-registered boat to open fire on the Cuban personnel.

Authorities said they later seized assault rifles, handguns, Molotov cocktails, bulletproof vests, telescopic sights, and camouflage uniforms from the boat.

But speaking ahead of the update, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio downplayed Cuba’s version of events, vowing that the United States Department of Homeland Security and the US Coast Guard will conduct their own investigations.  

‘We’re not gonna base our conclusions on what they told us,’ he said, insisting that the boat was not in international waters as part of a US government operation. 

Rubio then said he was not ‘going to speculate about whose boat it was, what they were doing, why they were there, what actually happened.’

Still, he vowed that the US will ‘respond appropriately based on what our information tells us.’

Vice President JD Vance also said late Wednesday afternoon that Rubio had briefed him on the incident. He added that the White House was monitoring the situation.

‘Hopefully it´s not as bad as we fear it could be,’ Vance said.

The shootout now threatens to increase tensions between the US and Cuba, following President Trump’s authorization of a mission last month to capture Nicolás Maduro, the former leader of Venezuela. 

Venezuela and Cuba have been close allies for decades, with Venezuela being the main exporter of crude oil and fuel to the island.

For weeks, the US has been intercepting and seizing oil tankers headed for Cuba, though the Trump administration has not acknowledged it is instituting a blockade.

Last week, the US Coast Guard seized a tanker 70 miles away from the island that was full of Colombian oil, The New York Times reported.

There are indications that the Trump administration wants to go further and pursue regime change. 

Trump himself has made numerous statements hinting that he wants the Cuba’s Communist leadership gone.

 In late January, The Wall Street Journal reported that officials close to the administration have been discussing ousting Miguel Díaz-Canel, 65, who has led the country since 94-year-old Raúl Castro retired as president in 2021.

Officials familiar with the plans were focused on waiting for Cuba’s economy to collapse, making a possible operation easier to accomplish.

However, it broke on Wednesday that the Trump administration is now allowing American companies to resell Venezuelan oil to private companies in Cuba. The new guidance came from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.

‘This favorable licensing policy is directed towards transactions that support the Cuban people, including the Cuban private sector (e.g., exports for commercial and humanitarian use in Cuba),’ the office said.

The Daily Mail has reached out to the State Department and the White House for comment on Cuba’s claims.