Wayne Rooney’s phone ‘hacked’ by newspaper

England and Manchester United footballer, Wayne Rooney, said on Twitter he had been visited by Scotland Yard detectives investigating the News of the World phone hacking scandal.

He wrote that he had been shown papers purporting to show that his phone and those of his associates had been targeted.

“Scotland Yard detectives came to see me earlier and showed me some documents, looks like a newspaper have (sic) hacked into my phone. #Bigsurprise,” he tweeted on Thursday.

He added later: “Gonna get my lawyers to deal with phone hacking until end of season. So I can focus on helping MUFC win trophies. Thx for all ur support.”

The footballer’s wife, Coleen, also tweeted: “Newspapers hacking into phones!! Desperate and Disgusting!!!! X”

A Scotland Yard spokesman was unable to confirm that a meeting had taken place but said it was “up to him” what he wrote on the website.

Rooney is now considering whether to sue the News of the World. The news comes after reports earlier this month that Rooney’s agent Paul Stretford, was considering legal action over the affair.

According to the Guardian newspaper, Rooney was warned he may have been targeted by private investigator Glenn Mulcaire who was jailed in 2007 along with a former royal journalist at the News of the World.

Documents shown to Rooney were reportedly seized by detectives in a raid on Mulcaire’s home in 2006.

Police are in the process of contacting everyone whose name appears in the paperwork as part of a fresh investigation into phone hacking at the News of the World.

Three journalists at the paper have been arrested since the Metropolitan Police reopened their inquiry into claims that staff hacked into the voice mail phone messages of celebrities and politicians.

Earlier this month the owner of the News of the World, News International, apologised to a number of people over the scandal and set up an estimated £20m compensation fund.

A number of high-profile people, including actress Sienna Miller and football agent Sky Andrew, are suing the company for breach of privacy. Miller has been offered a £100,000 to settle but she has not accepted the offer.

Scotland Yard has endured repeated criticism over its handling of the original phone-hacking inquiry, which led to the conviction of News of the World royal editor Clive Goodman and private investigator Glenn Mulcaire in 2007.

The paper’s former editor, Andy Coulson, resigned as Prime Minister David Cameron’s director of communications in January as he admitted that the ongoing row about the affair was making his job impossible.

Days later the Met launched a fresh investigation, codenamed Weeting, after receiving “significant new information” from News International.