An individual has been arrested on suspicion of perverting the course of justice in connection with the gross negligence manslaughter investigation at the Countess of Chester Hospital, where nurse Lucy Letby murdered babies. Cheshire Police executed a warrant and searched the person's home, but refused to reveal their age or sex. The arrested individual has been bailed pending further enquiries, according to a police spokesperson.
The arrest is part of Operation Duet, the ongoing investigation into corporate manslaughter and gross negligence manslaughter at the Countess of Chester Hospital. Three senior executives who worked at the hospital during Letby's killing spree were quizzed by detectives in June 2025 and later bailed. In March 2025, Detective Superintendent Paul Hughes confirmed the corporate manslaughter investigation had been widened to include 'the grossly negligent action or inaction of individuals.' He said 'those identified as suspects had been notified' but refused to confirm any names.
those identified as suspects had been notified
Lucy Letby murdered seven premature infants and harmed seven more between June 2015 and June 2016. She is serving 15 whole-life orders after being found guilty of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others. Letby has twice had applications to challenge her convictions rejected by the Court of Appeal.
An independent report, leaked to the Mail's Trial+ podcast, found that babies' lives could have been saved if hospital bosses had acted sooner to remove Letby from working. The report was commissioned by the Countess of Chester Hospital after Letby was first arrested in July 2018. It found managers were 'inexperienced' and missed 14 opportunities to suspend Letby because they became 'blinkered' to the possibility she was responsible. Instead of alerting the police, hospital executives commissioned a series of ineffectual external investigations. Executives 'ostracised' and 'bullied' doctors when they continued to raise concerns and demand police be called in. The report has been blocked from publication. By February 2016, at least two senior executives at the hospital knew about the link between Letby and the infant deaths.