Prison Officer Jailed For Drug Smuggling

8 October 2013, 11:30 | Updated: 8 October 2013, 11:33

 A member of prison staff who used vinegar-drenched chips to smuggle cannabis into HMP Wormwood Scrubs has been jailed for four years.

Jason Paul Singh, 24, of Totteridge Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire pleaded guilty to supplying drugs into the prisons estate at Isleworth Crown Court and was sentenced to four years imprisonment.

Isleworth Crown Court heard how on the evening of 10 September 2013, Singh went to work with 50 grams of cannabis wrapped in cellophane in his rucksack. The smell of the cannabis was so strong that Singh went to a fish and chip shop en route and bought a packet of chips which he smothered with vinegar. He then placed these in his bag, on top of the cannabis, to disguise the smell of the drugs.

But his fellow prison officers were tipped off and  he was found out when he arrived at work.

 Investigating officer DC Scott Pavitt, from the Met's London Prisons Anti-Corruption Team (LPACT), said: “Singh thought he could outwit the prison service by covering the cannabis with smelly food but they were already wise to his plans and ready to stop him from getting his contraband in.

"In interview, Singh stated he had been pressured to bring the drugs in by a prisoner and other inmates. Despite being fully trained in how to deal with situations like this, he continued with his corrupt act and he continues to refuse to name the prisoner he was smuggling the contraband in for."