The 'Weirder' Side Of News!

[BIAD]

Here's one I'm keeping an eye on. With the distances involved, it's a strange story.
The BBC are always reluctant to deep-dive into incidents like this one, but they do offer the bare bones.

Retired Met police officers charged with child sex offences

'Two retired Metropolitan Police officers have been charged with child sex offences, as part of an
investigation into a serving Met chief inspector who was found dead.

The Met said the charges follow an investigation into Richard Watkinson. His death is being treated as
unexplained but not suspicious.


Chief Inspector Richard Watkinson, 49. Charged with thousands of indecent images of children,
three counts of making indecent photos of a child discovered in a secret room in his house.
He was also charged with voyeurism and two counts of misconduct in public office.

Jack Addis, 63, from Perthshire, and Jeremy Laxton, 62, from Lincolnshire, will appear at Westminster
Magistrates' Court on 9 February. Ch Insp Watkinson, 49 was a serving chief inspector for neighbourhood
policing in the West Area Command Unit. He had been suspended from duty following his arrest

He was found dead in Buckinghamshire on 12 January, the same day the Met says he was due to be charged
with conspiracy to distribute or show indecent images of children, three counts of making indecent photos of a
child, voyeurism and two counts of misconduct in public office. An inquest into Ch Insp Watkinson's death has
opened and adjourned.

Cmdr Jon Savell from the Met's professional standards team said: "Ch Insp Watkinson was facing extremely
serious and concerning charges, as the result of a painstaking and thorough police investigation. "Before this
matter came to light, we had no previous information about these allegations or to indicate the officer posed
any risk to the public. "He had not faced any other criminal or conduct matters during his Met career."...'

BBC:


The top circle indicates the Perthshire area.
The centre circle indicates where Lincolnshire is.
The bottom circle indicates the area of Buckinghamshire.