Grenfell Tower fire: Police make first arrest as investigation continues

An unnamed 38-year-old man was arrested on Saturday by the Metropolitan police on suspicion of perverting justice in relation to the ongoing Grenfell Tower fire investigation. Authorities made the arrest in the Sussex area, where the man was taken to a local police station for questioning. Detectives released the man on the same day and remains under investigation.

This is the first arrest made by Scotland Yard in relation to the fire. A public inquiry was ordered by former Prime Minister Theresa May the day after the fire, promising that it would leave no stone unturned.

Phase one of the inquiry was conducted between June and December 2018, where reports stated there were "significant systemic failings" on the part of the London Fire Brigade. The brigade at the time had maintained a "stay put" order for residents to remain in their apartments long after they should have been evacuated.

The public inquiry is still currently underway. However, police say they will not be making any more arrests until the inquiry comes to a conclusion. The inquiry is set to conclude its hearing in December 2021, The Guardian reports.

Meanwhile, Scotland Yard is looking at the possibility of a criminal offence involving a project manager on the Grenfell Tower refurbishment. The project manager apparently admitted to tossing her notebooks into the trash bin despite her knowledge of the ongoing investigations.

Claire Williams worked for Grenfell landlords the Kensington and Chelsea Tenant Management Organisation (TMO) and left her job in May 2018. She admitted that she got rid of her records at the time she left the company.

"There was nothing underhand about it. I was clearing my desk, I looked and decided that everything that was in there was formally represented in minutes or other paperwork and it was of little value," she told the inquiry.

As for now, a lawsuit has been filed against Arconic, the construction giant who supplied the building cladding. District Judge Michael Baylson said the allegations of the company's cost saving is strong evidence of egregious conduct by Arconic.

Rage and fury has been spewing among the bereaved survivors of the fire as revelations emerge from the inquiry on how authorities have been handling potential evidence.

Survivors and supporters joined together for a virtual memorial in June to mark the third anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire that claimed 72 lives in June 2017.