A 46-year-old man has been arrested as part of an investigation into the procurement of contracts by the company PPE Medpro, which provided personal protective equipment during the Covid-19 pandemic.
The consortium is led by Baroness Michelle Mone’s husband, Doug Barrowman, 59, and was awarded contracts worth more than £200 million to supply gowns and face masks.
The National Crime Agency (NCA) said on Wednesday: “A 46-year-old man from Barnet, London, was arrested this morning at his home address as part of an on-going NCA investigation into suspected criminal offences committed in the procurement of PPE contracts by PPE Medpro.
“He is currently being interviewed by NCA officers.”
Baroness Mone, 52, and her husband have faced controversy over the so-called “VIP lane” contracts granted to some suppliers during the coronavirus pandemic, after she recommended the company to ministers.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has since issued breach of contract proceedings over the 2020 deal on the supply of gowns.
Assets linked to the couple were frozen in January while the investigation continues, with the Financial Times reporting that this included a Belgravia townhouse and an estate on the Isle of Man.
Both Lady Mone and Mr Barrowman deny any wrongdoing.