TWO civilian police staff face suspension as part of an inquiry into the suspected touting of illicit photographs of a mass naked art shoot.

The still pictures were said to have been taken from closed circuit tv footage of American photo artist Spencer Tunick's dawn shoot on the banks of the River Tyne, last July.

About 1,700 volunteers shed their clothes for a series of "human-life" photos, taken at sunrise on the Newcastle and Gateshead quaysides, also using the landmark Millennium Bridge as a prop.

A series of official Tunick pictures have formed the centrepiece of an exhibition, which has proved popular at Gateshead's Baltic arts centre, over the past two months.

Another group picture also greets international arrivals at Newcastle Airport.

But it emerged at the weekend that close-up images of some of the naked parti-cipants have been offered in pubs in the Tyneside area.

Police are investigating the claims, but have pledged that "prompt and robust action" will be taken if there is any truth in the allegations.

Security guards were employed and roads sealed off as part of the exercise to deter "peeping toms" when the dawn installation took place on Sunday, July 17, last year.

Participants, who travelled from across the country, were photographed in landscape shots, walking or standing in large group formations.

The volunteers said they were satisfied with the images when they were invited to a private preview of the exhibition, at the former Baltic flour mill, in January.

But they expressed shock at reports of the illicit pictures being offered in pubs.

Volunteer Michelle Easton, 25, said: "Everyone was happy to take part because it was all done in the name of art.

"To think that there might have been someone out there taking perverted pictures of us is disgusting.

"If it's true, then I want to know how someone working for the police is able to do something like this. And, I want to know if there are pictures out there, and intimate ones at that, of me or anyone else who took part.

"Apparently, some have been sold to people in pubs. But where the hell are those images now?"

A statement from North-umbria Police Deputy Chief Constable David Warcup said that, having received the allegations, an investigation was under way, into, "possible misuse of CCTV footage".

"We have spoken to a number of officers and police staff and, as a result, two members of police staff are in the process of being suspended," he said.

"If there is found to be any substance in these allegations, we will take prompt and robust action. This is not the standard of behaviour expected from anyone employed by Northumbria Police."

The exhibition, featuring a giant mural, half-a-dozen photographs and a video of the installation, attracted a record 10,000 visitors to the Baltic in its first week, in January.

Entering its final week, more than 70,000 people have now viewed the display.

An accompanying film, Naked City: Spencer Tunick in NewcastleGateshead, will be screened for the last time, on Sunday, hourly from noon to 3pm.

Tunick has previously filmed thousands of nude "models" in attractive city locations, such as Barcelona, in Spain, and Melbourne, Australia, as part of his portfolio.

He was on his latest naked photographic exercise, in the Venezuelan capital Caracas at the weekend