Former BBC News host Huw Edwards has pleaded guilty to three counts of making indecent images of children, the BBC reported on Wednesday.
The TV personality was arrested in November and charged last month. He made his pleas during a brief hearing at Westminster magistrates court in London on Wednesday.
The offenses are alleged to have taken place between 2020 and 2022. They relate to pictures that were shared in a WhatsApp chat, according to the Metropolitan Police, also known as Scotland Yard, or the London police.
“Edwards was arrested on 8 November 2023. He was charged on Wednesday, 26 June following authorization from the Crown Prosecution Service,” the Met Police previously said. “He has been bailed to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, 31 July. Media and the public are strongly reminded that this is an active case. Nothing should be published, including on social media, which could prejudice future court proceedings.”
The BBC suspended Edwards, the network’s best-paid and most high-profile news presenter, in July last year, over allegations, also made by The Sun, that he paid a teenager for sexually-explicit photos. Police did not take any action against Edwards, saying there was no evidence that a criminal offence had been committed. After taking a 10-month leave of absence, Edwards resigned from the BBC in April.