Mayor of Pitcairn Islands charged with possessing child porn

Michael Warren, the mayor of the Pitcairn Islands, has been arrested and charged with possessing images and videos of child pornography. He was charged with twenty counts of possessing indecent images of children and five counts of possessing pornographic images, videos, and documents concerning children. Warren was arrested by a New Zealand police officer posted on the island.

The Pitcairn Islands, which are home to around 50 people, have seen about a third of the male population face child sex charges, with major cases in 2004 and 2007. In 2004, six men were charged with offences against children as young as seven. Three years later, two men were charged in a similar case.

Mayor Warren was not involved in the previous trials, but did speak out against the charges and defended the accused, one of whom was former mayor Steve Christian. Warren was elected Mayor three years ago and said he would "vigorously defend" the suspects.