Prison officer jailed for drug dealing at prison
1:50pm Monday 25th August 2008
A CORRUPT prison officer has been jailed for six years after he was caught flooding Risley Prison with drugs valued at thousands of pounds.
Wayne Haselden’s drug smuggling operation was exposed on April 25 this year when sniffer dogs, used to routinely check staff at the category C jail, detected he had been in contact with illegal substances.
The 23-year-old initially denied any involvement and no drugs were found when he was strip-searched.
But he later admitted to police officers that he was carrying drugs in his car boot – supplied by a former inmate with whom he had hatched the plan.
A search revealed a carrier bag containing six grammes of heroin parcels embedded in a kilo of cannabis resin – valued at around £23,000 in the prison system – and £1,500 in cash in his glove compartment.
Judge Stephen Clarke said: “As a prison officer you are more than aware of the problems that face an establishment when drugs of this quantity get their way in and the effect it can have with gangs.
“When it is carried out by someone in your position it is a very serious breach of trust.”
Haselden, from Ashton-in-Makerfield, pleaded guilty in July to several counts of conspiracy to supply class A and B drugs.
Speaking at Warrington Crown Court on Monday, Joanne Parsons, prosecuting, said: “Haselden said he did not know the quantity or what it was but believed it to be cannabis.
“It was arranged by a former inmate at Risley and he was told to drop it off at a certain cell.
“He had been doing it once a month for five months. He did it first of all because he needed the money but it spiralled out of control.”
The court heard he used his profits, ranging from £800 to £1,000 per delivery, to pay off debts, go on holiday and buy clothes.
Daniel Dennis, defending, said Haselden had fully co-operated with police, admitting other occasions when he had smuggled drugs into the prison.
Judge Clarke said: “There are a number of letters presenting a picture of a man who to the world at large looked as if he was doing a responsible job and had the respect of people – which is the tragedy of this case.”
A Prison Service spokesman said the service was pleased with the sentence.
He said: “It reflects the seriousness of the offence and sends a clear message of the consequences of attempting to bring drugs into a prison.”