Mr Freer «received an abusive and threatening phone call»; last week
A 46-year-old man was arrested after a Conservative minister received a threatening phone call on the day he announced he was resigning due to the abuse he received.
< p>Mike Freer announced last week that he had stepped away from front-line politics due to death threats and intimidation over his pro-Israel views.
The Metropolitan Police said on Tuesday they had received a report from Mr Freer's office on February 1 saying he had received an «abusive and threatening phone call» the day before.
James Phillips, 46, has been charged with malicious messages, the Met said. He was arrested on Tuesday and taken to a north London police station for questioning.
Mr Freer, MP for Finchley and Golders Green, previously said he was «lucky to be alive» after the incident how he narrowly avoided meeting in 2021 Ali Harbi Ali, who later killed MP Sir David Ames.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, the 63-year-old said he had been subjected to a decade of intimidation, culminating in the alleged arson attack on his constituency office in December.
The alleged malicious phone call was made on the same day he announced he would stand down as MP at the next general election.
Mr Freer said: “I am grateful that the police responded quickly to the latest threat. .
“This is just another example of what, unfortunately, is becoming the norm for many deputies and their staff.”
Office Mike Freer injured in fire after suspected arson
Scotland Yard said the latest arrest is not believed to be related to the arson, which the force says is not a hate crime.
A separate investigation into the arson attack at an MP's office in Finchley, north London, on Christmas Eve is ongoing. A man and woman have been charged with setting fire with intent to endanger life.
Det Supt Will Lexton-Jones, from the north west London local policing team, said: “It is vitally important for elected officials and their staff to have confidence in our safety, and we are committed to ensuring that.»
«Today's arrest makes clear that we will not tolerate threats or aggression of any kind against elected officials. We will deal with such offenses quickly and decisively.
“We are in regular contact with MPs and other elected officials and are fully aware of the growing concerns they are expressing to us about their safety and, as you would expect, we have kept MP Freer informed throughout this investigation, including today's arrest.”
Mr Freer previously revealed that he and his staff now wear bulletproof vests when attending planned public events in his constituency after they learned that Ali had been watching his Finchley office before stabbing him to death Sir David with a knife during an election operation in 2021.
The MP said he had previously received threats from the Muslims Against Crusades group «that he would come to stab me.» On another occasion, he found “imitation Molotov cocktails” on the steps of an office.
Mr Freer, who has pro-Israel views and represents a predominantly Jewish electorate, said anti-Semitism could not be “separated” from intimidation.
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