The couple behind PinkNews have called allegations of sexual misconduct at the company “false, inconsistent and malicious” in their first statement since a BBC investigation into claims about their behaviour.

Benjamin Cohen and Anthony James have released an open letter on the PinkNews website accusing the BBC of misleading the public about their response to the investigation.

The BBC documentary spoke to 30 former and current workers at PinkNews who alleged a culture of heavy drinking led to instances of inappropriate behaviour from both Mr Cohen and Dr James.

Mr Cohen and Dr James have said they were initially unable to respond because of an ongoing criminal investigation. The BBC has been contacted for comment.

PinkNews says it has more an audience of millions for its content about the LGBT community.

Five former staff spoke to the BBC and alleged they saw Dr James kissing and touching a younger colleague, who was described as “too drunk to consent”.

Others said there was a toxic work culture and that they were too scared to speak out because the two most senior bosses at the company were married to each other.

When contacted about the original investigation, representatives for Mr Cohen and Dr James told the BBC they were not able to provide a statement at this time. However the BBC understood the couple’s position was that the allegations were false, which was included in the report.

Today, a statement from the couple said the reporting had caused “extremely serious harm” to them, to PinkNews and to their colleagues.

It read: “In August, we made a criminal complaint to the police in relation to alleged offences committed against us that are connected with these recent reports.

“As we told the BBC prior to its initial broadcast, a police investigation was ongoing and we were advised not to make a comment.

“We are now aware that devices had been seized with forensic investigations continuing.”

The statement added: “Despite the BBC being aware of the police investigation, it chose to broadcast and misled the public about our response. We have consulted lawyers in respect of these false, inconsistent and malicious allegations.

“We had explained to the BBC, that the stage of the police investigation meant that it was not possible for us to comment on the specific allegations even though they were strenuously denied.”

More than 10 more former staff have since come forward to the BBC to share their experiences at PinkNews since the report was published last week.

Following the report, Dr James has been suspended from his position as an associate non-executive director in the NHS, pending further information.

There is no suggestion that the suspension is related to his conduct within the NHS.

The BBC has contacted representatives of Dr James for comment regarding his suspension.