Members of organised criminal groups get hired as prison guards with the “sole purpose” of smuggling contraband into the prisons in UK, the Prison Officers’ Association (POA) has warned.

The POA, the union representing prison workers, has said that online interviews were the prime contributor of “hiring the wrong people”.

“Organised crime groups realise that there’s a lot of money to be made by smuggling contraband into prisons. People can be recruited as a prison officer and go into [the jail] with that sole purpose of bringing contraband in, to make a lot of money. They can do it by themselves or for an organised crime group,” a POA spokesperson said, according to the Guardian.

“You get paid to train and you do whatever you want after that. If you have a good run, you don’t get caught and get out after five or six months having made good bucks. It sounds a bit surreal. But that’s actually happening.”

The union said that a vast majority of prisons are facing this problem, and added that fail-safety measures are needed to curb this practice.

“In the vast majority of prisons, a lot of young staff could be conditioned into bringing stuff in, and other staff come to us with the sole intended purpose of taking stuff in.”

<h2>Low and inexperience major risk factors</h2>

Apart from that, inexperience and low pay are also contributing to young prison guards being lured by the gangsters.

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“There are always two types of corruption [in prisons]. You’ve got the very sophisticated type of corruption, where someone linked with organised crime almost goes in as a sort of sleeper. But most corruption isn’t that – most corruption is that someone naive gets into a relationship, sexual or otherwise, with a prisoner which is inappropriate. And of course, once you’ve been pulled in, it’s very hard to stop,” Charlie Taylor, the chief inspector of prisons, told the Guardian.

The police officer recalled a case where 18 female guards were fired&nbsp;and three were jailed for having relationships with prisoners at HMP Berwyn in north Wales.

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“In those cases, you have to ask, were they recruiting the right people? Or were they training these people properly in order to understand the risks of potential corruption?”

The union has urged the government to increase the minimum age of prison officers to 21 and better gate security to stop contraband arriving with corrupt officers.

(With inputs from agencies) 
 
&nbsp;

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Members of organised criminal groups get hired as prison guards with the “sole purpose” of smuggling contraband into the prisons in UK, the Prison Officers’ Association (POA) has warned.

Members of organised criminal groups get hired as prison guards with the “sole purpose” of smuggling contraband into the prisons in UK, the Prison Officers’ Association (POA) has warned. The POA, the union representing prison workers, has said that online interviews were the prime contributor of “hiring the wrong people”. “Organised crime groups realise that there’s a lot of money to be made by smuggling contraband into prisons. People can be recruited as a prison officer and go into [the jail] with that sole purpose of bringing contraband in, to make a lot of money. They can do it by themselves or for an organised crime group,” a POA spokesperson said, according to the Guardian. “You get paid to train and you do whatever you want after that. If you have a good run, you don’t get caught and get out after five or six months having made good bucks. It sounds a bit surreal. But that’s actually happening.” The union said that a vast majority of prisons are facing this problem, and added that fail-safety measures are needed to curb this practice. “In the vast majority of prisons, a lot of young staff could be conditioned into bringing stuff in, and other staff come to us with the sole intended purpose of taking stuff in.” Low and inexperience major risk factors Apart from that, inexperience and low pay are also contributing to young prison guards being lured by the gangsters. Also read | Half of Britain's bird and plant species at risk of extinction: Study “There are always two types of corruption [in prisons]. You’ve got the very sophisticated type of corruption, where someone linked with organised crime almost goes in as a sort of sleeper. But most corruption isn’t that – most corruption is that someone naive gets into a relationship, sexual or otherwise, with a prisoner which is inappropriate. And of course, once you’ve been pulled in, it’s very hard to stop,” Charlie Taylor, the chief inspector of prisons, told the Guardian. The police officer recalled a case where 18 female guards were fired and three were jailed for having relationships with prisoners at HMP Berwyn in north Wales. Also read | Trudeau issues apology for standing ovation to Nazi veteran in Canadian Parliament “In those cases, you have to ask, were they recruiting the right people? Or were they training these people properly in order to understand the risks of potential corruption?” The union has urged the government to increase the minimum age of prison officers to 21 and better gate security to stop contraband arriving with corrupt officers. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE

Criminal gangs sending aides as prison guard recruits in UK, warns officers’ union

Sri Lankan Navy said a joint operation with the Lankan Coast Guard led to the interception of an Indian boat and its five crew caught allegedly carrying Kerala Cannabis (434kgs)&nbsp;in the northwestern waters of the island nation. This operation carried out on Tuesday (September 13) evening&nbsp;also led to the apprehension of a Lankan fishing boat and five Lankan nationals who were allegedly connected with the smuggling attempt.&nbsp;

"SLCGS Suraksha engaged in this special operation inspected a suspicious Indian dhow in Sri Lankan waters west of the Kudiramalai Point, Puttalam through the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) on 13th September. The inspection led to the recovery of about 434kg (wet weight) of Kerala cannabis in nine sacks and it prompted SLCGS Suraksha to seize the stock of narcotics with five Indian suspects aboard the dhow," read the statement from the Lankan Navy.&nbsp;

It added,&nbsp;SLCGS Suraksha also seized a local one-day fishing trawler with five Sri Lankans, on suspicion that the trawler had reached the sea area to transfer the consignment from the Indian dhow and bring them ashore.&nbsp;

The street value of the stock of Kerala cannabis seized in this operation is believed to be around USD 352,000.&nbsp;The intercepted Indian vessel, the contraband, and the 10 suspects are to be handed over to the Kalpitiya Police for legal proceedings and investigation.&nbsp;

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Sri Lankan Navy said a joint operation with the Lankan Coast Guard led to the interception of an Indian boat and its five crew caught allegedly carrying Kerala Cannabis (434kgs) in the northwestern waters of the island nation.

Sri Lankan Navy said a joint operation with the Lankan Coast Guard led to the interception of an Indian boat and its five crew caught allegedly carrying Kerala Cannabis (434kgs) in the northwestern waters of the island nation. This operation carried out on Tuesday (September 13) evening also led to the apprehension of a Lankan fishing boat and five Lankan nationals who were allegedly connected with the smuggling attempt. "SLCGS Suraksha engaged in this special operation inspected a suspicious Indian dhow in Sri Lankan waters west of the Kudiramalai Point, Puttalam through the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) on 13th September. The inspection led to the recovery of about 434kg (wet weight) of Kerala cannabis in nine sacks and it prompted SLCGS Suraksha to seize the stock of narcotics with five Indian suspects aboard the dhow," read the statement from the Lankan Navy. It added, SLCGS Suraksha also seized a local one-day fishing trawler with five Sri Lankans, on suspicion that the trawler had reached the sea area to transfer the consignment from the Indian dhow and bring them ashore. The street value of the stock of Kerala cannabis seized in this operation is believed to be around USD 352,000. The intercepted Indian vessel, the contraband, and the 10 suspects are to be handed over to the Kalpitiya Police for legal proceedings and investigation. WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

Lankan Navy apprehends Indian boat, arrests 10 for alleged contraband smuggling

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