Updated

Two people were arrested Tuesday in the sprawling police inquiries probing alleged misconduct by the media, public officials and others in the wake of Britain's tabloid phone hacking scandal.

Scotland Yard said a 31-year-old prison officer has been arrested at his home in Northampton, central England, by officers investigating alleged bribes paid to public officials by reporters.

The man was detained on suspicion of conspiracy to corrupt and a second alleged offense of misconduct in a public office.

Police said a 28-year-old man was later arrested in an investigation into the suspected harvesting of data from computers and stolen mobile phones. He was held on suspicion of theft, then freed on police bail to return for further questioning in December.

A raft of new investigations began following revelations that the now-defunct News of the World, a Rupert Murdoch-owned tabloid, illegally accessed the cellphone voice mail messages of scores of people in the public eye.

Scotland Yard said the arrest of the prison officer came after information was passed to police by the management standards committee of Murdoch's News Corp.