Stephen Lee has won 4 ranking tournaments to date

Former Welsh Snooker Open champion Stephen Lee has been arrested following a police investigation into unusual betting patterns.

Lee, who is currently 25th in the world snooker rankings, has been arrested following a joint operation with the Gambling Commission.

A West Midlands Police spokesman confirmed that the player had been arrested on Thursday: “A 35-year-old man from Wiltshire was arrested on Thursday 11 February on suspicion of cheating.”

Stephen Lee has not made any comment on the matter, but the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) have made the following statement:

“We are aware of the recent news articles concerning match fixing and are awaiting further reports.”

“In instances where the Gambling Commission commences an investigation into a match, the WPBSA works together with the commission to assist in its inquiries and the WPBSA will hold its own investigation open pending the conclusion.”

“However, neither the commission nor the WPBSA will release information surrounding a betting matter while an investigation in ongoing.”