Two men have been arrested and two more interviewed in connection with the horsemeat scandal, City of London Police said last night.
A number of UK business and home addresses have also been searched.
City of London Police did not reveal the identities of the two men, who were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud.
Det Ch Supt Oliver Shaw, said: “This is an extremely complex investigation covering a number of jurisdictions and a variety of businesses.
“We are working closely with police forces, other law enforcement agencies and regulators to determine whether horse meat being used in a range of meat products was deliberate and coordinated criminal activity.”
The scandal has affected several major supermarkets including Tesco, Lidl and Aldi after traces of horsemeat was found in their products in January. Sainsbury‘s CEO, Justin King, has commented that trust in retailers has been “severely damaged” by the scandal.
City of London Police have worked closely with the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and has taken evidence from their own regulatory activity taking place in different parts of the country. The FSA, which was set up in 2000 to protect the public‘s health and consumer interests in relation to food, has came under criticism for fielding the flak that should have been directed at the supermarkets.
The FSA declined to comment as investigations were ongoing.
