18 female guards fired, resign from cushy UK prison over hookups with inmates
Libidos ran free in this lockup.
Eighteen female guards and staffers were either fired or resigned from a cushy UK male prison for engaging in hookups and other steamy sessions with inmates, according to UK reports.
The illicit activities at HMP Berwyn, the UK’s largest male prison, date back to when the facility opened in 2017 and have even resulted in three women facing jail time, according to records obtained by the BBC and the Mirror.
One smitten guard, Jennifer Gavan, accepted money to smuggle a phone to a robber that was later used to help the pair exchange intimate snaps of each other, the Mirror reported.
She pleaded guilty to misconduct and was slapped with eight months behind bars last year.
Guard Emily Watson had sex with a drug dealer who was in the prison for causing death by dangerous driving, the publication reported.
She performed a sex act on the inmate twice and had sex with him once while inside his cell, a UK court heard, Yahoo! News reported.
And probation officer Ayshea Gunn had a rendezvous with an armed robber with the two also swapping “highly sexualized” pics and videos, the Mirror reported.
She additionally smuggled in a pair of underwear for the prisoner inside her bra, according to court proceedings, Yahoo! News reported.
Both Gunn and Watson were sentenced to prison.
The 18 women caught up in the steamy scandal at the 2,000 capacity facility were either operational staff or working there from partner organizations like rehabilitation, the BBC reported.
The chair of the Prison Officers’ Association insisted the sexual encounters were because the “wrong kind of women” were being hired, the Mirror reported.
“Staff being recruited don’t have face-to-face interviews,” Mark Fairhurst said, adding. “It’s all done on Zoom.”
“A lot of people getting these jobs don’t have enough life experience and are susceptible to conditioning from prisoners,” he also said.
HM Prison Service previously announced it would enhance training and root out guards “who undermine our exemplary service,” the BBC reported.
The agency stressed it would not “tolerate those few officers who think they are above the law.”
“That’s why our newly bolstered Counter Corruption Team is working around the clock to root out and clamp down on those who undermine our exemplary service with their dangerous behaviour and ensure they face the strongest possible consequences for their crimes,” the HM Prison Service reportedly said.
Since 2019, 31 female officers in England and Wales have been dismissed over inappropriate interactions, stats reported on by the Mirror indicate.
More than 500 staffers at the prison have reportedly undergone anti-corruption training over the last 18 months.
HMP Berwyn is known for its superior conditions and was previously considered the UK’s “cushiest” jail, the Mirror reported.
The cells have no bars on the window with inmates allowed to have televisions, laptops and phones.
The prison also has a sports hall, fitness room and outdoor space for inmates, according to the Daily Mail.
Educational programs are also reportedly offered.
