It's sounds like you weren't necessarily denied for having an arrest record, you were denied for not being forthcoming about your arrest record. Most people remember being arrested. If they asked you to list your arrests, and your answer was "I don't remember," that would be problematic.

I also find it hard to believe that you have a "long arrest record" without ever being convicted. A lot of people plead guilty and then apply for jobs and say that they have never been convicted when in reality they were.