A female prison officer allegedly had “intimate relationships” with inmates and “smuggled cannabis and tobacco” into jail, a court was told.
Kayleigh Robson, 29, is accused of engaging in inappropriate affairs with prisoners at HMP Peterborough over a nine-month span. The ex-prison warden stood before Cambridge Crown Court charged with misconduct in a public office.
She is also accused of smuggling cannabis and tobacco into the Category B privately run prison, and participating in money laundering. Robson, from Grantham, Lincs, has pleaded not guilty to all charges, reports MailOnline.
The mum-of-one spoke only to confirm her name, date of birth and her pleas during the brief hearing. She is alleged to have “wilfully misconducted herself” in public office by “having intimate relationships with prisoners” between June 1, 2020, and February 28, 2021.
Between July 23, 2020, and April 19, 2021, she allegedly conspired with others to bring cannabis and tobacco into the prison, and “became concerned” in a money laundering arrangement involving bank transfers.
The full misconduct charge reads: “At Peterborough while acting as a public officer, namely prison officer, wilfully and without reasonable excuse or justification misconducted yourself in a way which amounted to an abuse of the public’s trust in the office holder by having intimate relationships with prisoners.”
Robson appeared in court alongside three men, with two others due to appear at later proceedings. Adam Hussain, 28, Ashley Neal, 30, and Roy Shalliker, 67, have all pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiring to smuggle contraband into HMP Peterborough. Hussain and Neal also refuted the accusations of money laundering.
Robson, along with her co-defendants, were granted bail, with a two-week trial set for April 2027 at Huntingdon Crown Court.
Judge Philip Grey addressed the defendants, saying: “I am sorry that it is so far in the future. As you may know, the courts have an enormous backlog, and that is simply the first date on which we can accommodate a two-week trial.
“I’m also required to warn you what would happen if any of you failed to attend for your trial. First of all, that would be an offence in its own right for which you could go to prison, and a warrant would certainly be issued for your arrest.
“Secondly, the trial may very well go ahead in your absence if you simply do not attend court. If that happens, the jury could be told that you’ve chosen not to come back to court, your lawyers might have to withdraw from representing you, and you would lose the right to give evidence in your own defence.
“So make sure, as I’ve said, that all of you stay in touch with your solicitors and are back at Huntingdon Law Courts in good time on April 19 next year.”
This is a breaking news story and is being constantly updated. Please refresh the page regularly with the latest news, pictures and videos.
You can also get email updates on the day’s biggest stories straight to your inbox by signing up for our newsletters.
Get all the very best headlines, pictures, opinion and video on the stories that matter to you by following Daily Star every time you see our name.
Follow Daily Star on Android – CLICK HERE
Follow Daily Star on Apple – CLICK HERE
Follow Daily Star on Snapchat – CLICK HERE
You can also sign up for Twitter alerts for breaking news by following @starbreaksnews and follow us @dailystar for all the latest updates.
Keep up-to-date with your must-see news, features, videos and pictures throughout the day by following us on Facebook at facebook.com/thedailystar.