BBC radio presenter charged with indecent assault

A popular BBC radio presenter has been charged with indecent assault, police said today.

Peter Rowell, 52, faces four counts dating back to the early 1990s, according to Avon and Somerset Police.

The BBC Bristol and Somerset radio host was charged by officers during the early hours of this morning and remanded in police custody.

He is due to appear before Bristol Magistrates' Court tomorrow.

Mr Rowell sparked a police manhunt last month when he was reported missing after failing to turn up to present his regular afternoon programme.

He was found the following in a "depressed" and "vulnerable" state in the Cumbria area.

The incident followed the recent death of his father.

Mr Rowell, from Wickwar, South Gloucestershire, originally became well-known in the West Country for fronting shows and news items for ITV West.

He has presented the Afternoon Show on BBC Radio Bristol and BBC Somerset since last May.