A Met Police officer leaked details of plans to arrest hate preacher Anjem Choudary to his wife while she was working for MP George Galloway, a court heard today.
Detective Inspector Mohammed Afiz Khan, 46, from Yorkshire, is accused of passing confidential information to his wife Aisha Ali-Khan while he was at the helm of the Muslim Contact Unit - part of the force's Counter Terrorism Command.
Ali-Khan, 33, who worked as the Bradford West MP's parliamentary secretary, is said to have asked her husband to use his position to investigate the source of a string of e-mails and obtain personal details.
In addition to the alleged leak concerning the radical Islamist cleric, Khan is also accused of obtaining CCTV footage from South Yorkshire Police without a valid reason.
The couple appeared together to face the charges during a brief hearing at Westminster Magisrates' Court.
Khan, dressed in a grey suit and blue striped tie, and Ali-Khan, wearing all black, stood together as they confirmed their names, ages and addresses during the brief hearing.
The two defendants were charged last month following a Met probe into alleged wrongdoing,
Khan is accused of improperly accessing the CCTV between March 16 and April 30, and of leaking details of Mr Choudary’s arrest on May 22 last year.
Accused: Ali-Khan, left, is accused of encouraging the commission of offences, while her Met detective husband Khan, right, is charged with misconduct in public office and breaching the Data Protection Act
Leak: Khan is accused of passing confidential information - including details of plans to arrest preacher Anjem Choudary - to his wife while he was heading up the Met's Muslim Contact Unit (file picture)
Ali-Khan is accused of asking her husband to commit misconduct in a public office on August 24 last year.
Judge Arbuthnot freed the pair, both of Keighley, West Yorkshire, on unconditional bail. They are due to appear at Southwark Crown Court on August 28.
Ali-Khan, of Keighley, West Yorkshire, is accused of two counts of encouraging the commission of offences. Khan is accused of two counts of misconduct in a public office and four counts of breaching the Data Protection Act.
Neither defendant entered any pleas to the charges.
Ali-Khan, of Keighley, West Yorkshire, is accused of two counts of encouraging the commission of offences. Khan is accused of two counts of misconduct in a public office and four counts of breaching the Data Protection Act.
Neither defendant entered any pleas to the charges.
Bailed: Ali-Khan, seen left outside court with her husband, worked for Respect MP George Galloway, seen right in a file photo, as his parliamentary secretary
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