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‘Flirtatious texts and kiss’: Prison officer jailed for relationship with inmate
The relationship came to light during a meeting on January 25, 2023, about an unauthorised overtime the prison officer had worked.
A prison officer at HMP Five Wells in Northamptonshire who exchanged 4,431 texts and calls with an inmate, many described as “sexualised or flirtatious,” has been sentenced to a year in jail.
Toni Cole, 29, formed an inappropriate relationship with the 28-year-old prisoner, violating prison regulations and breaching professional boundaries, police said.
Cole admitted to misconduct in a public office and was sentenced to 12 months in prison. She was also ordered to pay a £187 surcharge at Northampton Crown Court on February 13.
Police said Cole spent a lot of time with the prisoner and admitted to kissing him at least once at the Wellingborough prison.
The relationship came to light during a meeting on January 25, 2023, about an unauthorised overtime shift she had worked two days earlier.
CCTV footage from that shift showed the prisoner with his arm around Cole, police said, adding that when she was arrested, her Samsung S22 phone was seized from her locker, revealing at least 18 video calls and messages exchanged between them from September 2022 to January 2023.
Police said the investigation revealed that the prison officer had sat on the “inmate’s lap, kissed him,” and assured him she would warn him if she learned that her colleagues planned to search his cell.
Detective Inspector Richard Cornell of the East Midlands Special Operations Unit’s Regional Prison Intelligence Unit said, “Toni Cole knew what she was doing was totally inappropriate, and that her behaviour was not only putting her at risk, 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,” Cornell added.
With PA_Media inputs
