A MET Police chief inspector killed himself on the day he was due to be charged with possessing child abuse images, an inquest heard.

       Richard Watkinson was discovered dead at his home in Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, after he failed to answer bail.

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       Richard Watkinson hanged himself on the day he was due to be charged with child sex offences

       The senior officer, who worked in neighbourhood policing in West London, had hanged himself, an inquest heard.

       Buckinghamshire Coroner's Court was told Watkinson's death came "against the background context" of the police investigation.

       A handwritten note was also discovered alongside his body on January 12 this year.

       Watkinson was due to charged with conspiring with two colleagues to distribute or show indecent images of children to each other.

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       He also faced three counts of making indecent photos of a child, voyeurism and two counts of misconduct in public office.

       Officers who searched his home discovered a sick stash of evidence in a secret room hidden behind a trap door.

       The cache included children’s underwear, sex toys and thousands of images of child abuse.

       Assistant Coroner Alison McCormick said she was satisfied on the balance of probabilities that Watkinson intended to take his own life.

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       She said both a police and toxicology report concluded that there was no evidence of third party involvement.

       In July, retired officers Jack Addis and Jeremy Laxton, both 63, were jailed for conspiring with Watkinson to distribute or show indecent images of children.

       Southwark Crown Court was told the images and videos were shared for their "own sexual pleasure" using a hard drive that the men added to when they met up.

       The sick pictures included 2,516 in Category A - the worst kind - 1,032 in Category B and 1,701 in Category C.

       If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please call the Samaritans for free on 116123.

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       Jeremy Laxton was jailed for his involvement in sharing the sick images Credit: PA 3

       Along with Jack Addis, the pair kept thousands of images on a hard drive Credit: PA