Met Police detective working in paedophile unit charged with child sex offences

A Met Police detective who investigated sexual abuse crimes has been charged with a string of child sex offences. Detective Constable Chris Maitland, 40, who worked in the Met's Sexual Offences, Exploitation and Child Abuse Command, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Friday (18 March).

The officer, who was originally arrested in November 2015, has been charged with two counts of sexually touching a girl under the age of 13. He also faces five counts of taking an indecent image of a child and seven counts of making an indecent image of a child.

The unit in which Maitland worked, also known as Sapphire, investigates rapes and serious sexual violence. Its detectives also probe child abuse, saying its role is to "ensure all children are safeguarded from harm".