The head of the Charity Commission has apologised to the widow of a former RUC officer, over a threat of legal action against her after she raised complaints about the regulator.
The woman received a letter from the regulator two years ago after she raised concerns about the behaviour of the commission towards the Disabled Police Officers Association of NI (DPOANI).
The woman's husband had been a member of the association which had been under investigation by the commission.
He had retired on health grounds from the RUC after an IRA bomb attack on a police station during which he received physical and psychological injuries.
The widow expressed her view that his treatment by Charity Commission (CCNI) during the investigation had been a factor in his death.
In 2018, the commission wrote to the RUC widow offering condolences.
But the letter, posted online by loyalist blogger Jamie Bryson, included a line stating "any repetition" of the claim that its investigation had contributed to her husband's passing "may result in the commission considering legal action".
Speaking to the BBC on Wednesday, the woman said the Charity Commission's actions had caused her "untold hassle and trouble and sleepless nights".
The CCNI investigation began in 2014 and she said her husband was under "undue pressure" as a result.
"He was very upset about it, and so was I. He got more depressed, he got very agitated.
"He was more worried about security then than he ever had been", she said.
The Charity Commission's recently appointed Chief Commissioner Nicole Lappin, who was not in post when the letter was sent, said: "It is very difficult to hear the impact this letter had on her.
"I am very sorry for that. I want to be very clear, that letter shouldn't have been sent."
She said the letter was "disproportionate" and "not appropriate in any circumstance".
Mrs Lappin added that the threat had been withdrawn and that she would be happy to meet the woman to discuss it further.
She said she is looking at two similar threats to members of the public and has appealed for anyone in a similar situation to come forward.
