Female prison officer jailed for sending 4,369 intimate messages to inmate

A female prison officer who sent more than 4,000 racy messages during a sexual relationship with a prisoner has been jailed for 12 months.

Toni Cole, 29, was discovered to have shared a series of intimate affairs with a con while working at the new ‘super-prison’ HMP Five Wells in Northamptonshire. 

A court heard she sent 4,369 messages to the prisoner and took part in 18 video calls while engaging in ‘contact which was sexualised or flirtatious’.

She also kissed him and sat on his lap and even told him she would give unauthorised advanced warning of any cell searches at the Category C prison.

The relationship took place between December 9, 2022, and January 25, 2023 before it was rumbled by prison bosses. 

Cole, of Wellingborough, Northants., pleaded guilty to misconduct in public office and was jailed for a year at Northampton Crown Court.

Cole is the second female officer convicted of misconduct in public office at the Wellingborough jail.

Last summer, trainee officer Rachel Stanton, 31, was given a suspended jail term after a steamy affair with a prisoner.  

The mum-of-five’s relationship with armed robber Edwin Poole was uncovered when prison staff found three intimate photographs and a sexy love letter in his cell.

CCTV also caught the pair going into a prison storeroom for an hour of ‘intimacy’.

And in December 2024 it was reported that a third female prison officer, who has not been named, had been arrested and suspended for similar behaviour. 

The £253m prison, which is operated by G4S, has been under scrutiny after inspectors raised serious concerns about staff safety, drugs and food shortages.

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