Police have released two men held in connection with the leaked Bermuda Housing Corporation files.

The pair, who are believed to have had links to the Progressive Labour Party, were picked up on Thursday night and spent two nights in custody before being released without charge on Saturday evening. Police spokesman Dwayne Caines confirmed the men were released on Police bail but there was no word on when they might return for questioning.

The hunt for the leakers led Government to call in top Police officers from Scotland Yard in Britain and to gag the media after revelations from the secret documents were aired on ZBM news and in the Mid-Ocean News.

The files are said to run to thousands of pages of interviews, e-mails and bank statements while the original copy of the dossier, which is far larger, has gone missing.

The contents of the un-published sections of the dossier have not been revealed during this week’s court hearing on the media ban. However, the portions already printed by the Mid-Ocean News reportedly revealed that Premier Ewart Brown, former Premier Jennifer Smith and former Ministers Renée Webb and Arthur Hodgson were all investigated by Police looking into the BHC allegations.

Construction boss Zane DeSilva was another prominent person investigated as part of the probe into allegations of corruption at the BHC, the documents reportedly showed.

When the investigation finished in 2004, then acting Director of Public Prosecutions Kulandra Ratneser said many of those investigated could only be accused of bad ethics.

Mr. Ratneser also said some of the people investigated escaped prosecution due to Bermuda’s antiquated corruption laws.

Since the BHC scandal — which is believed to have cost the taxpayer $8 million — one person has been convicted. Terrence Smith, a BHC officer, was found guilty and jailed last year on 41 counts of fraud.