State Department Official 'Solicited Minor'

A US State Department official is due in court accused of trying to arrange sex with a minor, who was actually an undercover detective.

Daniel Rosen, 44, was arrested at his home in Washington DC at around midday on Tuesday and held in custody with the DC department of corrections.

He is listed as a State Department director of counter-terrorism, said Virginia police.

In the sting, Rosen was detained "following a series of online exchanges" with a female detective assigned to the Fairfax County Police Department's Child Exploitation Unit.

He faces one count of using a communications device to solicit a juvenile when he appears at DC Superior Court on Wednesday afternoon.

State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said in a statement on Tuesday night the department was aware one of its employees had been arrested.

But she cited personnel and privacy reasons for not identifying the person or the charges.