The former leader of Essex County Council, has hailed his victory after successfully sueing the police for wrongful arrest.

Lord Hanningfield, real name Paul White, was sent to prison in July 2011 after being convicted of false accounting over £14,000 claimed from the House of Lords. He served nine weeks of a nine-month jail term before returning to his home in West Hanningfield outside Chelmsford, where he was arrested just five days later in a dawn raid by officers investigating expense claims from Essex County Council.

Police eventually dropped that investigation, and Hanningfield sued them, claiming that the arrest was unnecessary because he had co-operated fully with all previous investigations.

At the High Court, judge David Eady agreed, and awarded the 72-year-old peer £3,500 in damages.

Speaking after the verdict, Hanningfield said he was delighted with the outcome, adding: “This case was never about winning money but was to prove a point that the officers were wrong to simply assume I would not co-operate with them.

“I hope that further council tax is not wasted by taking this matter further.”

His solicitor, Mark Spragg from Keystone Law, said: “This was an important case.

“It reminds the police that arrests should never be made without first considering whether there is a viable alternative to depriving someone of their liberty and invading their home, which there plainly was in this case.

“Lord Hanningfield is not above the law but neither does he fall beneath it because of his conviction. It can only be hoped that Essex police can now accept the decision of the court.”

A spokesman for Essex Police said: “We are disappointed with today’s judgment and are considering the merits of appealing the decision.

“We note that the court accepted that officers had acted in good faith and that they had honestly believed the arrest was necessary.

“The decision to arrest is never taken lightly and we recognise the right of individuals to challenge such decisions before the Courts.”