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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
National
Mark Naylor & James Rodger & Tim Hanlon

Prison officer made thousands selling mobile phones in jail with lover inmate

A prison officer "fell in love" with an inmate and made thousands of pounds smuggling mobile phones into a jail in a racket with him.

Emma Johnson, from Mackworth in Derbyshire, would also tip off her lover Marcus Solomon of when there were cell searches at HMP Sudbury, a court was told.

She was finally rumbled when her phone number was found on a different prisoner's contraband mobile and the 25-year-old's web of deceit quickly unravelled as her messages to lover Marcus Solomon were found.

Johnson was jailed for 15 months and Solomon was given 13 months at Derby Crown Court, reported BirminghamLive.

Judge Jonathan Bennett said: "I accept you fell in love with your co-conspirator but prison officers do their public service with pride and when that trust is fundamentally abused like this, it is essential those found guilty receive a punishment to deter others.

Johnson was working at HMP Sudbury as a prison officer when she committed the crimes (Derbyshire Police / SWNS)

"Mobile phones in prison are sadly used to enable (those inside) to carry on their criminal activities, facilitate the movement of drugs and for witness intimidation and that is why Parliament made it a criminal offence. This was not just one or two mobile phones going into prison, it was a significant amount."

Kate Temple-Mabe, prosecuting, said Johnson was employed as a senior prison officer at HMP Sudbury where Solomon was then serving, in the summer of 2020.

She said the prisoner was moved from Derbyshire to HMP Ranby amid concerns they were "spending excessive amounts of time together".

Miss Temple-Mabe said: "(A phone) was seized and on it was saved a number which was Miss Johnson's. She was arrested, her phone was seized and there was excessive communication between her and Mr Solomon and it was evident there was a conspiracy between them and people unknown to convey mobile phones for Mr Solomon to sell inside.

"Money was going into a bank account belonging to Miss Johnson and there were messages in which she talked of buying and picking up three iPhone 5s and two iPhone 6s. There was one message about money going into her account in which she said 'okay, just let me know so I can move it into a different account'."

Of the messages, she added: "In one of them she said to him 'we are smashing it'. It is difficult to imagine a more fundamental breach of duty. Prison officers are tasked with maintaining order in a prison, bringing articles into prison is a serious breach of that responsibility."

Johnson and Solomon both pleaded guilty to conspiracy to convey mobile phones into prison and Johnson also admitted a money laundering charge.

Alaric Walmsley, for Solomon, 28, of Overbury Road, Northfield, Birmingham, said his client is now with a new partner, has a baby and another child on the way early next year.

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