A Saskatchewan RCMP officer facing child pornography charges has pleaded not guilty.
Aiden Pratchett had been serving in Fond du Lac when he was charged with accessing and possessing child pornography.
Pratchett’s lawyer, Mark Brayford, entered the plea for his client Wednesday afternoon in a Prince Albert courtroom.
Brayford said Pratchett wanted to move on with the process as quickly as possible.
“We are not going to have a preliminary hearing, we are going to proceed straight to a provincial court trial. We are going to move this forward as quickly as we can,” said Brayford. “Obviously it is not good for a police officer to have a criminal charge hanging over their head. His position is that he is not guilty and wants to have a trial as soon as it can be arranged.”
The trial is set to begin on October 5 in Prince Albert.
Pratchett was officially charged on December 22 after an investigation began in October.
The officer is currently suspended with pay.