Former head of U.K. police watchdog group charged with raping a minor

London – The former head of the U.K.'s police watchdog, Michael Lockwood, has been charged with three counts of rape against a girl who was under the age of 16, Britain's Crown Prosecution Service said Friday. He has also been charged with six counts of indecent assault.

Lockwood, 64, ran the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC), which handles serious complaints against police in England and Wales, from 2018 to 2022, the organization said. On its website, the IOPC says it investigates, "the most serious matters, including deaths following police contact," and that it sets "the standards by which the police should handle complaints."

Lockwood stepped down in December last year after it emerged that he was under investigation.  

The events for which Lockwood is facing charges allegedly took place between October 1985 and March 1986, prosecutors said Friday. At that time, Lockwood was in his 30s. He is due to appear in court on June 28.  

"Mr Lockwood strenuously denies all of these allegations from nearly 40 years ago," said Emma Brooks, partner at the law firm PCB Byrne, BBC News reported. 

"He will strongly defend his position and will continue to co-operate with the proceedings," Brooks said.

The charges come after a number of high-profile crimes by police officers eroded public confidence in U.K. law enforcement and sparked protests around the country. 

In 2021, off-duty officer Wayne Couzens kidnapped, raped and murdered 33-year-old Sarah Everard as she was walking near her home. Prior to killing Everard, Couzens had been accused of multiple instances of indecent exposure, but was allowed to continue working.

Earlier this year, another man, David Carrick, admitted to carrying out 24 counts of rape and sexual offenses against 12 women while he was a police officer. He was sentenced to a minimum of 30 years in prison.

A report released on Thursday by journalists at The Bureau of Investigative Journalism said more than 300 U.K. police officers have been reported for rape over the past five years — a rate of one officer a week — and over 500 have been reported for sexual assault.

Ten of those who have been accused of sexual assault have been convicted, the Bureau of Investigative Journalism said, while 350 of those reported are still working for the police. It said 250 have been reported more than once.