The mayor of Adamstown, the only settlement on Pitcairn island, has been charged with possessing child pornography.

Michael Warren was arrested by a New Zealand police officer seconded to the island and will appear in court later this month.

He has been been charged with possessing indecent photos of children and possessing pornographic images, videos and documents.

About a third of all the adult men on the tiny Pacific island of about 50 people have faced child sex charges in two high-profile cases in the past six years.