The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable has contradicted a claim by Sinn Féin that telling the British Heart Foundation about a potential police investigation into former press officer Michael McMonagle would have prejudiced that investigation.

Two Sinn Féin press officers gave references to the British Heart Foundation on behalf of a former colleague who was subsequently convicted of child sex offences

DUP MLA Trevor Clarke questioned Chief Constable Jon Boutcher about the comment at a meeting of the Northern Ireland Policing Board on Thursday. Responding, Mr Boutcher said he did not want to get “dragged into any political tit-for-tat”, describing police as having become the “lightning rod”.

He then took up a position with the British Heart Foundation in 2022, for which he received references from two other former Sinn Féin press officers. Sinn Féin has been criticised for not alerting the charity to the fact McMonagle was under police investigation for child sex offences.