The high-flyer, the horse trainer, the PA and the chauffeur – a who’s who of the accused

REBEKAH Brooks, who has been described as the “ultimate networker”, experienced a meteoric rise to the top of Rupert Murdoch’s media giant.

She became so close to the tycoon that he refused to give her up, even as the growing storm engulfed his company last summer and led to the closure of the News of the World.

The big-selling Sunday tabloid had been where Ms Wade, as she was then, rose to prominence, eventually becoming editor in 2000, the youngest of a national newspaper at just 31.

Brooks, from Warrington, went on to take the top job at the Sun in 2003 and was appointed chief executive of News International in 2009.

The commentator Henry Porter, who wrote extensively about the power of the Murdoch press, described her as being “one of the most powerful people in this country”.

However, last year her own empire came tumbling down.

Days after she resigned from News International she was arrested over alleged phone-hacking and corruption, offences. The phone-hacking scandal has also brought her husband Charlie Brooks to the fore. Rebekah, who had previously been involved in a high-profile relationship with the actor and TV presenter Ross Kemp, met the racehorse trainer at a party with Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson.

Mr Brooks has been a columnist forthe Daily Telegraph as well as writing a novel entitled Citizen.

His arrest in March came just days after he had written in the Telegraph: “The happiest moment of my year is about three hours before the first race at Cheltenham on Tuesday.”

However, his hopes of attending the event were dashed by dawn raids and the couple were instead required to answer police questions.

The four other people charged yesterday all worked closely with the ex-NoW chief.

Cheryl Carter, who worked as her personal assistant, was also beauty editor of the Sun. Mark Hanna was NI’s head of security, Paul Edwards was Brooks’s chauffeur, and Daryl Jorsling is a security consultant.

The first charge against Brooks is that, between 6 and 19 July last year, she conspired with her husband, Carter, Hanna, Edwards, Jorsling and “persons unknown” to conceal material from officers.

The second is that Brooks and Carter “conspired together permanently” between 6 and 9 July last year to remove seven boxes of material from the NI archive. The third is that Mr and Mrs Brooks, Hanna, Edwards and Jorsling conspired together between 15 and 19 July of the same year to “conceal documents, computers and other electronic equipment”.