Teenager charged after online threats to DUP leader Arlene Foster
Mark Sloan, 18, from County Down, Northern Ireland, has been charged after messages were sent to the DUP leader through Facebook.
Friday 7 July 2017 10:33, UK
A teenager has been charged after threats were made to DUP leader Arlene Foster.
Mark Sloan, 18, from County Down, was arrested in relation to messages sent to the Northern Ireland politician on Facebook.
He is understood to have been detained by the Police Service of Northern Ireland in the early hours of Thursday morning.
In a statement, the PSNI said: "Police have charged an 18-year-old man with the improper use of a public electronic communications network.
"As is normal procedure, all charges will be reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service."
The threats are understood to be sexually explicit and of a violent nature.
The Democratic Unionist Party is currently supporting Theresa May's minority government at Westminster.
Mrs Foster visited Downing Street twice to negotiate a £1.5bn 'confidence and supply' deal with the Conservatives.
Earlier this week, she expressed regret that her party and Sinn Fein had not yet reached agreement to restore devolved government at Stormont.
Mrs Foster has been DUP leader for 18 months and served as Northern Ireland's First Minister for a year from January 2016.