A police officer is facing charges of common assault over the arrest of a man who climbed the side of a tower block last summer.

Pc Luke Wenham, 31, is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday, the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) said.

He is facing two counts of common assault after the arrest of a man in Elephant and Castle, south-east London, on August 17 last year.

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The man scaled the side of a 15-storey building near Meadow Row while trying to evade police.

After a stand-off that lasted several hours, he climbed down of his own accord.

The Met referred the arrest to the IOPC last year and it began an investigation in September which was completed in January.