Joe Arpaio on President Trump's pardon

Joe Arpaio, the former sheriff of a county in Arizona who was convicted of criminal contempt has said the pardon he received from US President Donald Trump in August was not a result of his strong support for the president.

"That was the right thing he did, I'm not guilty I will continue to fight, you said I had a criminal record, well I do have a criminal record because of the latest decision of another judge on that contempt of court, so we'll appeal that," he told BBC Hardtalk's Stephen Sackur.

Arpaio was due to be sentenced earlier this month before President Trump intervened. He was found guilty of violating a 2011 court order to stop detaining migrants.

The decision to pardon the former policeman has been condemned by Democrats, some Republicans and civil rights groups.

Watch the full interview on Wednesday 25 October on BBC World News, the BBC News Channel and watch again on BBC iPlayer (UK only).