A police officer who was suspended for allegedly fondling a dead woman's breasts during a call-out in Los Angeles could face up to three years in prison.

David Rojas, 27, has been charged with having sexual contact with human remains without authority, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said in a statement.

He could face up to three years behind bars if found guilty.

A veteran LAPD officer has been suspended after he allegedly fondled a dead woman's breasts and accidentally recorded the incident on his body camera (file image)

Video courtesy of KTLA

The veteran officer was responding to a report of a dead body in a residential unit with his partner on October 20, when the alleged incident occurred.

At one point Rojas's partner left to retrieve something from their car, and he attempted to turn his body camera off before allegedly groping the corpse.

But, unbeknownst to the officer, body cameras used by the LAPD continue recording for two minutes after the button has been pressed.

LAPD officials say the alleged incident was captured on those two minutes of film, and discovered by superiors during a routine inspection.

Rojas was released from jail on a $20,000 bond on Thursday.

Chief spokesman Josh Rubenstein told the LA Times: 'We immediately launched an administrative investigation once we learned about the incident.'

A spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Protective League, the officers' union, added: 'If this allegation is true, then the behavior exhibited by this officer is not only wrong, but extremely disturbing.

Police chiefs allege the officer tried to turn his body camera off before fondling the woman, but was unaware that it carries on recording for two minutes after the button is pressed

'[It] does not align with the values we, as police officers, hold dear, and these values include respect and reverence for the deceased.

'This behavior has no place in law enforcement.'

The LAPD announced just last month that it was going to start carrying out random inspections of the 14,000 recordings captured by body cameras each day to ensure officers are following proper procedure.

Before that, the department only routinely reviewed footage that featured arrests, use of force or was subject to a complaint by the public.

Police Commissioner Shane Murphy Goldsmith said the aim was to 'identify trends, develop training and hold officers accountable to the highest standard of fair and unbiased policing.'