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Prison Chief Got Pillows with Killer's Face on and 'Masterpiece' Tattoo for Him
Helen Spree admitted smuggling drugs and phones into HMP Liverpool after sexually explicit chats and image exchanges with three inmates, prosecutors said.
- On Monday, Liverpool Crown Court sentenced former Independent Monitoring Board chair Helen Spree to five years and three months in prison after she pleaded guilty to misconduct in a public office and conspiring to smuggle cannabis and prohibited items into HMP Liverpool.
- As chair of the IMB, Spree held statutory powers to move unaccompanied throughout HMP Liverpool, enabling her to facilitate criminal activity despite 78 corruption intelligence reports flagged between February 2020 and July 2021.
- Spree engaged in explicit relationships with inmates Dylan Westall and Thomas Porterfield, describing herself as "the prison version of Deliveroo" while smuggling cannabis, phones, and SIM cards over a 20-month period.
- Investigators recovered "custom made pillows with Mr Westall's face embossed on the front" from Spree's home, along with a "Masterpiece" tattoo on her chest that matched messages exchanged with Westall.
- Defense counsel Arthur Gibson argued Spree was manipulated and mentally damaged by past trauma, but Judge Neil Flewitt KC rejected the claim, stating she deliberately exploited her position for personal and criminal gain.
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Total News Sources12
Leaning Left3Leaning Right1Center5Last UpdatedBias Distribution56% Center
Bias Distribution
- 56% of the sources are Center
56% Center
L 33%
C 56%
11%
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