MP honeytrapper used pictures of students in their late teens as bait in order to obtain phone numbers of parliamentarians

Two students in their late teens had their pictures used by a honeytrapper as bait to lure MPs into exchanging explicit photographs, it is claimed.

The pair, who are now in the late 20s, had decade-old images of themselves used by a suspected scammer who targeted more than 20 members of parliament, researchers and journalists.

The people behind the plot contacted potential victims on messing app WhatsApp or the gay dating app Grindr, posing as a man called 'Charlie' or a woman called 'Abi' depending on who they were talking to.

The scammers would claim to have met the targets, most of whom were men in their 20s or 30s, on a previous occasion and sent explicit pictures in a bid to obtain similarly sexual photos in return.

It is claimed that at least two Conservative MPs are believed to have sent explicit images of themselves to the people behind the plot.

It was claimed yesterday that the suspected scammers used profile pictures for 'Charlie' and 'Abi' that were actually taken from the Facebook pages of two 28-year-old's who have nothing to do with politics.

The pair, a financial analyst in London and a lawyer in Birmingham, attended the same sixth form in their teens, with the male contacting police over the use of his photos, The Times reported.

He deleted his professional and social media profiles after being contacted by the publication for comment, while the woman did not respond to a request for comment. 

There is no suggestion either of the pair are involved in the scam and the explicit photos sent to parliamentarians are not of them.

It is not known yet who the people behind the plot are, and police are investigating the suspected 'spear fishing' attack with concerns it is a deliberate attempt to compromise Westminster.

The plotters gained access to the phone numbers of people working in Westminster through William Wragg, the Member of Parliament for Hazel Grove in Greater Manchester.

Mr Wragg admitted to providing the numbers after becoming fearful the perpetrators 'had compromising things on me' after interacting with them Grindr and exchanging pictures.

He has since given up the Tory whip and resigned from his roles on the Public Accounts and 1922 committees.

The former vice-chairman of the 1922 Committee spoke to The Times on Friday, admitting he shared colleagues private contact details after sharing intimate pictures of himself online.

Those colleagues, including MPs, staffers and a journalist, were then allegedly sent flirtatious messages from people claiming to be 'Charlie' or 'Abi'.

Since then, POLITICO has claimed to have verified that 'at least 20 people in UK politics' have been sent unsolicited WhatsApp messages from numbers linked to both the Westminster 'honeytrap' plot and a second alleged targeting aimed at Lib Dem conferencegoers last year.

Multiple Liberal Democrats admitted they had received strange messages while at their party's conference in Bournemouth, The Express reported.

Attendees told the newspaper an account posing as a man his late 20s had asked at least six people for 'political intelligence' about MPs.

And a Scottish Labour official said he also received an unsolicited WhatsApp message from 'Charlie' while at the Labour Party conference in Liverpool last October.

In light of Mr Wragg's admission, Luke Evans, MP for Bosworth, and Andrea Jenkyns, MP for Morley and Outwood, have also since said publicly that they have received suspicious messages.

Leicestershire Police have confirmed they are investigating after receiving a complaint of 'malicious communications' against a parliamentarian.

Mr Wragg stepped down from the role of vice-chair of the 1922 Committee on Monday evening, and told the Speaker he would resign as chair of another Commons committee he sits on in light of the scandal.

Speaking to The Times last week, he acknowledged fault, saying he was 'so sorry my weakness has caused other people hurt'.

'We were meant to meet up for drinks, but then didn't,' he explained. 'Then he started asking for numbers of people. I was worried because he had stuff on me.

'They had compromising things on me. They wouldn't leave me alone.

'They would ask for people. I gave them some numbers, not all of them. I told him to stop. He's manipulated me and now I've hurt other people.'

Mr Wragg remains MP for his constituency.

Conservative Party chairman Richard Holden has said it was 'right' for William Wragg to resign the Conservative whip.

Mr Holden told Sky News: 'He has issued a fulsome apology, he has resigned from the 1922 Committee executive, he has resigned a role as chair of PACAC, which is an important committee in Parliament, and he has also given up the Conservative whip.

'I think we already knew he wouldn't be standing at the next election, he is standing down, so yes, I think that's the right thing to have done.'

Asked whether Mr Wragg had jumped or been pushed, Mr Holden said the now-Independent MP had 'made his decision'.

He added: 'It's quite clear his career in public life is at an end.'

Pat McFadden MP, Labour's National Campaign Coordinator, commenting on William Wragg MP resigning the Conservative whip, said: 'The fact it was left to William Wragg to resign is another indictment of Rishi Sunak's weakness.

'His MPs were left yet again being sent out to defend a position that has collapsed.

'Rishi Sunak puts party management first every time - and he can't even do that properly. It is no way to run a country.

'Britain deserves so much better than this endless Tory chaos. the only way to get it is to vote Labour on May 2nd.'

Following Mr Wragg's revelations in The Times newspaper, Conservative MP for Bosworth Luke Evans claimed he was the victim of 'cyber flashing' and was the member who first alerted police to the issue.

In a video posted to Facebook on Friday, Dr Evans said: 'The first set of messages I got was on a day I was with my wife and I got a one time open photo on WhatsApp of an explicit image of a naked lady. As soon as I got these the next day I reported it to the police, the authorities and the chief whip.

'Ten days later I got another set of messages, this time, however, I was sitting with my team in the constituency office, so we were able to record the conversation and catch photos and videos of the messages coming through including another explicit female image.'

A BBC journalist revealed on Monday that he too was targeted in the Westminster sexting honeytrap scandal.

Henry Zeffman, the corporation's chief political correspondent, went public about being contacted in a so-called 'spear phishing' attempt over WhatsApp.

He was the second journalist in as many days to reveal that they were targeted after Harry Yorke, a journalist at The Sunday Times, also said he received flirtatious messages from a WhatsApp user calling themselves 'Charlie'.

Mr Zeffman broke his silence yesterday by writing about his experience for the BBC's website, revealing he was contacted by both 'Abi' and 'Charlie'.

He wrote: 'It started with a WhatsApp on a Sunday morning in March. Coming from a number I did not have saved in my phone, it read: 'Henry! Long time no speak – how're you doing? Miss seeing you around Westminster x.'

'V sorry,' I replied. 'Who is this?' The response was instant. 'Haha it's Charlie! I used to work in Parliament and we swapped numbers after drinking one night.'

Mr Zeffman said he found the messages odd and did not reply, only to get another message a few minutes later saying: 'Random Sunday message I know.'

Then 'Charlie', within minutes, added: 'I'm going to guess you aren't still single – should I bow out gracefully? Lucky girl x.'

He blocked the sender. However, around 24 hours later another message arrived in his WhatsApp inbox from 'Abi'.

Mr Zeffman wrote: 'Instantly I was sure this was the same person as the day before.'

'Who is this?' I replied. 'Abi Miller x.' They claimed to have previously been an intern at The Times, where I worked until last year.'

Mr Zeffman said he was 'flustered' and also blocked this sender.

Scotland Yard yesterday said it has launched an inquiry into the scandal.

The force said its Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command was 'carrying out an investigation following reports that a number of unsolicited messages were sent to MPs over recent months'.

It is the second force to investigate the scandal after Leicestershire Police announced on Thursday that it had received a report of 'malicious communications' involving a local MP.