A prison officer has been jailed for a year after admitting to having an inappropriate relationship with an inmate.
Toni Cole, 29, kissed and sat on the lap of a 28-year-old prisoner she was in a relationship with at HMP Five Wells in Northamptonshire.
Northamptonshire Police said she shared 4,431 texts and calls with the prisoner over a five-month period that were “sexualised or flirtatious” in nature, including a photograph of underwear.
Cole pleaded guilty to misconduct in public office and was sentenced to 12 months in prison and a £187 surcharge at Northampton Crown Court on February 13.
Cole spent “considerable time” with the prisoner, whom she admitted kissing at least once, at the Wellingborough prison, according to the police.
Police said the relationship was discovered during a meeting on January 25, 2023, to discuss an unauthorised overtime shift she had worked two days prior.
According to the force, CCTV footage from that shift showed the prisoner with his arm around Cole.
The prison officer, of Gordon Road, Wellingborough, had her Samsung S22 mobile phone seized from her locker when she was arrested, and police discovered that the pair had made at least 18 video calls and shared messages between September 2022 and January 2023.
According to the investigation, the prison officer sat on the inmate’s lap and “promised to tip him off” if she discovered that his cell was about to be “spun” by her colleagues.
Detective Inspector Richard Cornell of the East Midland special operations unit is regional prison intelligence unit stated, “Toni Cole was aware that what she was doing was completely inappropriate, and that her actions were endangering not only her own safety, but also the safety of her colleagues and inmates.
“The majority of prison staff carry out their duties to the highest standards, and I hope this sentence sends a clear message to those who seek to undermine public trust while holding positions of authority that inappropriate relationships will be robustly dealt with using the full force of the law.”
