Record number of cops romping with prison lags caught thanks to Line of Duty style anti-corruption unit
A RECORD number of prison officers having flings with lags have been snared thanks to a Line of Duty-style police squad.
The Counter-Corruption Unit, which has been likened to the BBC drama’s AC-12 task force, targets screws suspected of having romps behind bars.
It is behind a 30 per cent jump in the number of jail officers, female and male, prosecuted for inappropriate relationships since 2017.
At least 40 a year, mostly young women, are now being collared for illegal affairs with cons.
Last year, 31 female staff were sacked for flings.
There were just 19 in the previous four years.
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Among those jailed have been Emily Watson, 26, who had at least three trysts with a lag, and Ayshea Gunn, 27, who smuggled her knickers into a career criminal’s cell.
Both worked at HMP Berwyn, a 2,100-capacity Category C male jail in Wrexham, North Wales.
Prisons minister Edward Argar said another 140 staff are to join the “beefed up” CCU to find staff rule-breakers and “ensure they face the full force of the law”.
Its surveillance methods mirror those used by “AC-12”, whose members include Det Insp Steve Arnott, played by Martin Compston.