Police officer charged with sexual assault and grooming of girl

A police officer has been suspended from duty after being charged with sexual assault and meeting a girl aged under 16 after grooming.

Keith Burgess, a neighbourhood policing officer based at Southampton Central police station, is also charged with three counts of misconduct in public office and two charges of making an indecent photograph of a child.

The 41-year-old police constable has been released on conditional bail to appear before Guildford Magistrates' Court on June 2.

A Hampshire Police spokesman said the charges followed an investigation by the Professional Standards Department into Burgess.

The spokesman said: "He is currently suspended from duty while the criminal investigation is completed."