A high-ranking female officer in the Metropolitan Police is facing trial accused of having a 54-second clip of a child being sexually abused on her phone.
Chief Superintendent Robyn Williams, 54, indicated a plea of not guilty to possessing the moving image at Willesden Magistrates’ Court today.
She is also charged with failing to report her sister Jennifer Hodge, 54, who sent her the clip over messaging service WhatsApp on February 2 last year.
The failure is said to be an ‘improper exercise of police powers’, according to the indictment.
Social worker Hodge and boyfriend Dido Massivi, 61, are both charged with distributing the horrific clip – said to show a five-year-old black girl performing oral sex on an adult.
According to the charges, Hodge is said to have sent the video to 18 people on February 2 and Massivi sent it to two people on the same day.
Massivi is also charged with distributing another video, of a 12-year-old girl and a seven-year-old boy forced to carry out sex act on an adult to an unknown number of people on January 29.
He was also said to be in possession of an ‘extreme pornographic’ clip of a woman engaging in sex with a horse on February 2.
Prosecutor Katie Weiss said: “In relation to the image that was shared between the three parties. This was a video clip with a duration of 54 seconds. In this clip a young black female, she’s around five years old, has plaits and flowers in her hair.
“She is wearing clothes. There’s a man in that video, you can’t see him properly but due to the size of his hands he’s quite clearly an adult.”
Ms Weiss added: “It was sent 18 people including her sister who is a police officer. She. failed to report the matter to a colleague or police station.”
Hodge, wearing a grey long-sleeved dress and a crucifix necklace, fanned herself during the hearing and wiped tears from under her glasses with a tissue as details of the sexual acts were described to the court room.
Williams, who wore a smart grey blazer and skirt, looked straight ahead during the hearing and spoke only to confirm her name and nationality.
Massivi, who is a bus driver, wore a dark coat over a shirt and trousers and sat close to Hodge in the dock.
Chair of the bench Caroline Walsh said: “You will be released to Harrow Crown Court for a plea and trial preparation hearing, the date of that is the 9th April, 28 days from today. The hearing will be at 10 o’clock in the morning.”
Massivi and Hodge, both from Dollis Hill, west London, were granted conditional bail and Williams, of south London, was granted unconditional bail. The three will next appear at Harrow Crown Court for a plea and trial preparation hearing on April 9.