Piers Corbyn arrested over leaflets likening Covid-19 vaccination to Auschwitz

Piers Corbyn has been arrested and released on bail following complaints by Southwark council over leaflets comparing the Covid-19 vaccination roll out to Auschwitz.

Mr Corbyn, 73, who is the brother of the former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, was arrested with another man on Wednesday on suspicion of malicious communications.

Leaflets created by housing campaigner Mr Corbyn and artist Alex Heaton, were distributed through residents’ doors in Southwark.

They showed a sketch of the Nazi concentration camp with the words “Vaccines are safe path to freedom” written on the gates – in replacement of infamous slogan “Arbeit macht frei” (Work sets you free).

Mr Corbyn has said he volunteered to be questioned by police at Walworth police station on Wednesday and was later arrested.

He said: “Further to a police phone call on February 3, I volunteered to answer questions from police about the leaflets first issued in December.

“There, they formally arrested me to enable fuller questioning, with which I fully cooperated.

“I with my solicitor, gave a full detailed rebuttal of the claim of ‘malicious communication’. The police also looked in my flat and found nothing.”

In a statement the Met said: “A 73-year-old man was arrested in Southwark on Wednesday on suspicion of malicious communications and public nuisance.

“A 37-year-old man was arrested earlier the same day in Bow, East London, on suspicion of a public order offence.

“Both men were taken to a South London police station. They have since been bailed to return on a date in early March.

“The leaflet contained material that appeared to compare the Covid-19 vaccination programme with the Holocaust.”

Southwark council condemned the leaflets earlier this week as ‘disturbing’ and an attempt to scare residents with harmful conspiracies.

Cllr Kieron Williams, Leader of Southwark Council, said: “It is deeply disturbing that a very small minority is playing upon the fears and concerns of some of our residents, particularly those most at risk from Covid-19 such as people from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds.

“Shameful disinformation of this sort dampens our efforts to help save lives, and that is why we have reported this incident to the police, who are investigating whether a crime has been committed.”

The Mayor of Lambeth, Philip Normal, has also criticised the leaflets calling them ‘beyond disgusting’.

Posting on his twitter account @philipnormal, he wrote: “As if this came through our door. Antisemitism, racism, HATE.. is not tolerated in my house, or this country, or the planet Earth.”

Speaking to the South London Press, Mr Corbyn said: “The claim by police prompted by certain politicians that this was malicious or anti-semitic is a monstrous attack on freedom of expression.

“The notion I am in any way anti-semitic is absurd and insulting.

“Any claims I am or have ever been anti-semitic are baseless and false and appear related to baseless accusations and fake twitter claims.

“They appeared it seems as a bizarre way of associating such false claims with my brother [Jeremy Corbyn].

“He is not anti-Semitic; neither is Alex Heaton, the artist involved in the recent leaflet subjected to police review after an MPs intervention.”

No charges were made by the police and Mr Corbyn will remain on bail until early March 2021. The leaflet has now been taken down from his website.