These prison officers turned their backs on the law and found themselves behind bars.
People who work in jails have a duty of "putting public service above personal interest", according to the the Civil Service code. However, these former prison officers broke the rules and found themselves locked up.
The job of a prison officer differs from day-to-day, but duties include supervising prisoners, performing security checks and searches, helping prisoners access support and maintain relationships with professionals such as social workers, responding to emergencies and incidents, both immediately and as part of incident reviews and controlling disorderly behaviour.
Some of those on the list below smuggled drugs into jails and had illicit affairs with prisoners while they were behind bars. One ex-prison officer used ill-gotten gains to spend on a hair transplant, breast surgery and a £10,000 wedding.
Take a look at the former prison officers who found themselves behind bars below:
Peter Hughes
Peter Hughes smuggled drugs into a prison and spent his ill-gotten gains on a hair transplant, breast surgery and a £10,000 wedding.
Staff at HMP Liverpool noticed an increase in drugs inside the jail and carried out cell searches at one of the wings. It was then they uncovered numerous prohibited items, including mobile phones, SIM cards, spice drug, steroids and tobacco.
Following this, CCTV was checked and Peter Hughes, 32, of Linwood Road, Tranmere was seen entering HMP Liverpool carrying the bag prior to his shift starting in the early hours of April 25, 2020. He was seen entering a prisoner's cell and then leaving 20 seconds later with an empty bag.
Following the analysis of CCTV, the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit launched an investigation into Hughes. This led to the 32-year-old being arrested at his home address on April 28, 2020.
During a search of his house, officers recovered a large number of steroids, needles, syringes, wipes and a quantity of cash. Hughes pleaded guilty to misconduct in public office, possession of class C drugs with intent to supply, and conveying class C drugs into HMP Liverpool while he worked as a prison officer at HMP Liverpool between October 9, 2017 and April 28, 2020.
On Friday, May 12, the former prison officer was jailed for four years at Liverpool Crown Court.
Erica Whittingham
A female prison officer who fell in love and formed a relationship with a dangerous robber behind bars helped him escape from jail.
Michael Seddon left a decoy in his cell to trick guards before meeting Erica Whittingham who was waiting in her car outside HMP Sudbury. While Seddon, originally from Bootle, was on the run, Whittingham remained in contact with him, meeting Seddon in hotels across England and buying him gifts, such as clothes, over a six month period.
Whittingham said she had fallen in love with Seddon, who was jailed in 2011 for his part in a terrifying robbery. Seddon was one of a gang of four men found guilty of tying a 78-year-old farmer to a chair in his own home and beating him in a terrifying two-hour ordeal.
He was caught after he formed a relationship with another woman, reports DerbyshireLive.
Whittingham returned to prison as an inmate rather than an officer, and was jailed for three years back in August 2021. Whittingham, of Leigh Lane, Bramshall, Uttoxeter, previously pleaded guilty to harbouring an escaped prisoner and misconduct in public office.
Phillip Meadows
Former prison officer Phillip Meadows was caught trying to smuggle thousands of pounds worth of drugs into jail and was put behind bars.
Suspicions about dad-of-four Meadows had earlier been raised by a sniffer dog during an unannounced search by a team investigating the supply of illegal items into HMP Liverpool.
But nothing was found and he was allowed in to work. The very next day, “assuming that the coast was clear" he arrived for duty but was again picked out by a drugs dog - and £91,000 worth of heroin and cannabis resin was found in his car.
Meadows, of St Leonard’s Close, Netherton, Liverpool, pleaded guilty to possessing heroin and cannabis with intent.
He was jailed for five years four months back in 2019.
Paul Heap
Paul Heap was caught taking heroin, crack cocaine and 2,000 steroid tablets into HMP Altcourse, Liverpool.
Liverpool Crown Court was told how the dad-of-two was busted when a visit to work while on sick leave sparked suspicion among his colleagues. Security staff found drugs with an estimated street value of £215,000 inside two cartons in a rucksack Heap took into the jail on June 28, 2017.
Inside one of the cartons was 523g of cannabis, 12.8g of crack cocaine and 14g of heroin. The second was stuffed with 418g of cannabis, 10.6g of crack cocaine, 2,048 steroid tablets, an iPhone, a charger and two SIM cards.
Searches of Heap's car and home in Hartley's Village, Aintree, led to the discovery of £9,100 in cash. He claimed this was savings - partly built through the sale of an Xbox games console and a drum kit he said he sold by advertising in the ECHO.
No evidence of this could be found, however, and a financial investigator discovered Heap had been struggling for cash and was using a mixture of short and long term loans and credit cards to keep ahead of creditors.
He was jailed for nine years back in 2018.
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