Hertfordshire Police have apologised and agreed a payout to a man who says he was thrown into a jail cell because of a blog post.

The force confirmed they have settled out of court with Samuel Smith, with the Daily Mail reporting that the IT firm director will receive £34,000 in compensation.  The 47-year-old launched legal action after his house was searched on March 8 last year, his devices were seized, and he spent a night in a cell at Hatfield Police Station.

According to reporting from the Daily Mail, the probe was dropped six days later, with the police log apparently saying that the search was not "suitable or lawful".  The newspaper now reports that police have admitted the arrest was “unlawful”, that Mr Smith committed no crime and that officers “trespassed on his property”.

In his blog, Mr Smith wrote a post correcting misinformation about a woman in a local park falsely accused of being a paedophile who was photographed and confronted as a result of online posts.  He referred to two men who posted false information about the woman as an extremist and a drug user.

Mr Smith said 12 officers then turned up at his home and told him he was under arrest for sending false communications.

The Mail reported that while he was arrested over the summary offence of false communications, the raid on his home was wrongly carried out for more serious malicious communications offences.

A Hertfordshire Police spokesperson: “Hertfordshire Constabulary has now settled Mr Smith’s civil claim." The force apologises to Mr Smith for the incidents which were subject to the civil claim.

“The constabulary will review the relevant facts and issues in order to identify learning with a view to any improvement which can be made to training and service delivery.”

It is the second time in the last year that Hertfordshire Police have paid out over a wrongful arrest after Bushey councillor received £20,000 as a result of being “unlawfully arrested”.