London (CNN) -- Authorities arrested eight people Saturday -- including five journalists of Britain's bestselling Sun newspaper -- as part of an inquiry into alleged illegal payments to police and officials. The other three are a police officer, an employee of the Ministry of Defence and a member of the armed forces, the Metropolitan Police said. A search was carried out at News International's offices in east London, the police said, as well as the homes of those arrested. News International, which owns the Sun, is a U.K. subsidiary of media mogul Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. Following the arrests, Murdoch, chairman and CEO of News Corp, issued a personal assurance to one of his executives to continue to own and publish The Sun newspaper, according to an internal staff memo sent by News International Chief Executive Tom Mockridge.
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NEW: All eight are free after posting bail, police say
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Rupert Murdoch will continue to own and publish Sun, an executive says
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The executive names the five Sun employees who've been arrested
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A police officer, a member of the military and a Ministry of Defence employee were also arrested
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