A group of celebrities are taking legal action against Associated Newspapers. This week, Prince Harry, Elton John and more stars launched lawsuits against the publisher of The Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday, Variety reported. READ MORE: Palace Aides Reportedly Looking To Stop Prince Harry Publishing Memoir The group, which also includes Elizabeth Hurley, Sadie Frost, David Furnish and Baroness Doreen Lawrence of Clarendon, alleged they are “the victims of abhorrent criminal activity and gross breaches of privacy by Associated Newspapers.” Several of the filings cite “misuse of private information” in their claims against the publisher.
Allegations include the hiring of private investigators to bug phones and cars, paying police for inside information, hiring people to listen in on phone conversations, impersonating staff at hospitals to access banking and financial information “through illicit means and manipulation.” READ MORE: Meghan Markle And Prince Harry Hold Hands In New Portraits After Senior Royals Release New Image Without Them A spokesperson for Associated Newspapers denied the allegations in a statement to Variety. “We utterly and unambiguously refute these preposterous smears which appear to be nothing more than a pre-planned and orchestrated attempt to drag the Mail titles into the phone hacking scandal concerning articles up to 30 years old,” they said. “These unsubstantiated and highly defamatory claims – based on no credible evidence – appear to be simply a fishing expedition by claimants and their lawyers, some of whom have already pursued cases elsewhere.” Harry has previously brought two other suits for libel and slander against Associated Newspapers in recent years.
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