A police officer has admitted trying to blackmail a man who she arrested for possessing indecent images of children by pretending to be a paedophile hunter and threatening to publicise his arrest.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said Pc Marie Thompson, 29, was the officer in charge of a South Yorkshire Police investigation into the man.
She arrested and interviewed him in October 2022, before he was released under investigation, pending further examination of his digital devices.
In January 2023, the man received an email from a ProtonMail address demanding £3,500 be paid into a bank account, with an account number and sort code provided, the CPS said.
The email purported to be from a group called Paedophile Hunters and stated that the payment would 'ensure that information remains between you and us'.
