Prison officers suspended in corruption probe

Last updated at 15:29 14 August 2006


Fourteen prison officers have been suspended in the wake of corruption allegations at Pentonville prison in north London.

A Prison Service spokeswoman said the officers were suspended by the governor of the prison.

The jail will "briefly reduce" its maximum number of inmates - at a time of record prison numbers in England and Wales - as a result of the move, she added.

She went on: "The governor of HMP Pentonville has taken the decision to suspend 14 officers following allegations of corrupt behaviour.

"All those suspended will be subject to investigations led by senior governors from other prisons in the London area.

"If any alleged or otherwise suspected criminal activity is uncovered during the investigations relevant information will be passed to the police."

Prison Service director general Phil Wheatley said: "I will not tolerate staff corruption of any sort by any member of the Prison Service.

"Allegations of corruption will be investigated thoroughly and where evidence is found to support those allegations the appropriate disciplinary action will be taken."

The corruption allegations concerned trafficking and allegations of "inappropriate relations", the spokeswoman added.

The spokeswoman said the service had a "zero tolerance" approach towards corruption among staff.

She said: "We are determined to root out corruption wherever it is discovered.

"Unfortunately in the closed world of prisons there will inevitably be some criminal collusion between staff and prisoners and we will always need to be extremely vigilant."

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