# Reform councillor arrested over election paperwork

> Ryan Coogan, elected to Huntingdonshire District Council in May, was arrested on suspicion of making false statements in his nomination papers.
- Title: Reform councillor arrested over election paperwork | Shortify
- Summary: Ryan Coogan, elected to Huntingdonshire District Council in May, was arrested on suspicion of making false statements in his nomination papers. Reform UK…
- Keywords: reform uk, ryan coogan, huntingdonshire district council, election fraud, nomination papers, cambridgeshire police, politics, news, Reform, councillor, arrested, election
- Source: The Independent — https://independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/reform-arrest-ryan-coogan-huntingdonshire-council-b3061487.html
- Published: 2026-10-05T13:48:15+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: reform uk, ryan coogan, huntingdonshire district council, election fraud, nomination papers, cambridgeshire police, politics, news
## Reform councillor arrested
Ryan Coogan, elected to Huntingdonshire District Council in May as part of Reform UK's surge, has been arrested on suspicion of making false statements in his nomination papers.
## Reform's election success
Coogan was part of a Reform surge that saw Nigel Farage's party take one thousand four hundred seats across the country in May. He also stood as the party's candidate in the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough mayoral election, finishing second.
## Arrest and bail conditions
Cambridgeshire Police arrested the forty two year old from Waterbeach on September twenty fourth on suspicion of making false statements in nomination papers. He was released on bail to return to Milton Police Station on December twenty second.
## Coogan's response
Coogan told the BBC he had always been happy to help police with their inquiries but could not comment on the investigation as he had not been informed what the alleged issue or crime was.

> I have still not been informed what the actual detail of the alleged issue or crime or other supposedly is
## The legal penalty
The Electoral Commission says it is a criminal offence to knowingly make a false statement on nomination papers. The penalty is either an unlimited fine or up to one year's imprisonment.

> criminal offence to knowingly make a false statement on nomination papers
## What candidates must declare
To stand for election, candidates must fill in a nomination form, a home address form, and a form confirming they consent to the nomination. Police inquiries followed an allegation of false statements on a candidate nomination paper in the May elections.
## Key takeaway

Reform UK councillor Ryan Coogan was arrested on suspicion of making false statements in nomination papers for the May elections and released on bail pending further investigation.