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Victoria Johns & Catherine Addison-Swan

Caroline Flack's mum rejects apology from Met Police as she speaks out on handling of case

Caroline Flack's mum has spoken out on the Met Police's apology following the death of the Love Island star, saying that she does not accept the apology.

Christine Flack expressed her belief that her daughter, who tragically took her own life in 2020 while facing an assault charge, would still be alive today if her case had been handled differently by the Met. Caroline, 40, faced prosecution for assaulting her then-boyfriend Lewis Burton, with a coroner later ruling that she had taken her own life because she feared the media attention surrounding her trial.

Following the presenter's arrest, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) initially decided she receive a caution - a decision that was appealed by a senior Met officer and resulted in Caroline facing a charge of assault by beating. The Met was criticised for its handling of the case, and has since apologised for not recording the reason why the star had been charged, The Mirror reports.

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However, Caroline's mother has rejected this apology. Speaking to Victoria Derbyshire on BBC's Newsnight, Christine Flack said: "It just seems wrong. They haven't said why there were no notes taken, why nothing was recorded. I don't know whether they're covering something."

When asked if she thought her daughter would still be alive if Caroline had just been cautioned, Christine said: "I do, I really do."

"Once all the pictures came out in the newspapers and things were written about her on social media - they just picked up the bad," she said. "There was a lot of good, but Caroline wasn't reading the good - she was only reading the bad."

Christine added: "She lost her job straight away, without even being found guilty or going to court. She had another series axed."

The Met told the BBC that Caroline's arrest had been handled appropriately. A spokesman said: "Our thoughts and sympathies remain with Ms Flack's family for their loss and we are sorry for the impact this has had on them.

"When a person is arrested they can be held in custody for a period of up to 24 hours to allow officers time to gather evidence and investigate the alleged offence.

"A review by the Independent Office for Police Conduct did not identify any misconduct in relation to the handling of Ms Flack's arrest, however, it concluded that an officer involved in the investigation should receive reflective practice."

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