British PM Boris Johnson won't face misconduct inquiry

May 21 (UPI) -- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson won't face a police inquiry for misconduct related to dealings with an American businesswoman while he was mayor of London, officials said Thursday.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct said in a report it found no evidence that Johnson awarded or favored U.S. tech entrepreneur Jennifer Arcuri, who founded the Innotech Summit and Hacker House in 2014.

The IOPC started investigating last summer whether Johnson used his political position to unlawfully award financial benefits and access to Arcuri. Johnson was mayor of London between 2008 and 2016.

Arcuri's company had received about $150,000 in public money for sponsorships and went along on trade missions with Johnson overseas.

"We found no evidence to indicate that Mr. Johnson influenced the payment of any sponsorship monies to Ms. Arcuri or that he influenced or played an active part in securing her participation in trade missions," the IOPC said.

While the office cleared him of criminal charges, it acknowledged Johnson may have had an improper affair with Arcuri.

"There was evidence to suggest that those officers making decisions about sponsorship monies and attendance on trade missions thought that there was a close relationship between Mr. Johnson and Ms. Arcuri, and this influenced their decision-making," the IOPC said. "Our review established there was a close association between Mr. Johnson and Ms. Arcuri and there may have been an intimate relationship."

The IOPC report said the relationship wasn't criminal but it may have breached a code of conduct.

Johnson has previously said the investigation was politically motivated and denied charges he acted inappropriately while mayor of London.

"Such vexatious claims of impropriety in office were untrue and unfounded," a spokesman for Johnson said Thursday. "This was not a policing matter, and we consider this was a waste of police time."

Johnson was hospitalized for several days in March with the coronavirus disease. Last month, fiancee Carrie Symonds gave birth to the couple's son, Wilfred.