Inside forbidden prison relationships and why officers fall for killers like Jordan McSweeney

As Zara Aleena's killer Jordan McSweeney avoids prosecution for an 'inappropriate relationship' with his prison teacher, a criminologist explains how forbidden flings behind bars pan out

Forbidden relationships between prison officers and inmates aren't rare - and there is much more to jail flings than physical attraction, a criminologist tells the Mirror.

Former prison teacher Hayley Jones, 33, pleaded guilty last month to having an "inappropriate relationship" with convicted killer Jordan McSweeney at HMP Belmarsh. But despite the workshop instructor admitting to misconduct, the Crown Prosecution Service has today decided to drop the charge of encouraging or assisting the commission of an indictable offence against McSweeney.

A CPS spokesperson said there was "insufficient evidence" to prove that McSweeney was guilty of further criminality, but he "remains behind bars". The twisted killer is currently serving a minimum term of 33 years for the heinous murder and sexual assault of Zara Aleena, a 35-year-old law graduate, in June 2022.

Jones and McSweeney aren't the only ones to have formed an illicit relationship, with a string of officers illegally hooking up with criminals behind bars, as evidenced in the courts over the years. Criminologist and psychologist Alex Iszatt told the Mirror that these inappropriate relationships "do occur regularly in prisons, but they are not always driven by sexual attraction".

Judge David Miller said of the killer's case: "Some of the evidence was that he was getting special favours or treatment. He may have been bragging to another prisoner about the power that he had over this person."

Alex said a number of factors play a role in a jail fling forming, including "emotional attachment, vulnerability, dependency, power dynamics, trauma bonding, and grooming". She said: "In the case of Jones and McSweeney, she wasn't a typical officer - she was a prison teacher, which adds another layer to the power dynamics."

Earlier this year, former HMP Wandsworth officer Linda De Sousa Abreu, 30, pleaded guilty to misconduct in a public office after a video was widely shared on social media showing the prison officer having sex with an inmate in a cell. It came after three female guards were jailed for having illicit affairs with inmates at HMP Berwyn in Wrexham.

Ayshea Gunn, 27, exchanged more than 1,200 phone calls, including explicit video calls, with prisoner Khuram Razaq and even smuggled a pair of knickers into his cell. Her fellow officer Emily Watson, 26, performed a sex act on an inmate in his cell.

In 2020, Jennifer Gavan, 27, sent intimate photos of herself to prisoner Alex Coxon and kissed him during the relationship. And in 2022, Corinne Redhead, 29, was jailed for nearly two years after having an inmate's baby following a secret year-long fling with convicted robber Robert O'Connor at The Mount jail in Hertfordshire.

But how did all of these relationships start? Alex explained: "When women work in male-dominated prisons, they can become rare, sexualised objects of attention. This dynamic has been portrayed in porn and occasionally, the boundaries between fantasy and reality can blur."

The psychologist continued: "Prisons can be isolating environments for both officers and inmates, leading them to turn to each other for emotional support, developing inappropriate attachments. If officers aren't trained to set boundaries, and supervisors fail to manage effectively, situations can quickly get out of hand - especially if the individual lacks emotional support outside of work."

Alex said female officers may be more susceptible to inappropriate relationships if they are "emotionally vulnerable or lonely". She explained: "Inmates may exploit these vulnerabilities, particularly if they sense that the officer is seeking emotional validation or attention."

Once this unprofessional relationship takes off, another level of mind games comes into play, Alex says, with "fear of retaliation, loss of earnings, and loss of respect" potentially forcing the relationship to last longer than planned. "Ultimately, inappropriate relationships between female correctional officers and inmates are not primarily driven by physical attractiveness.

"Rather, they stem from emotional vulnerability, manipulation, power dynamics, and the stresses of the prison environment, all of which can contribute to boundary-crossing," Alex concluded. Former prisoner David Shipley witnessed officers "cross the line" with inmates during his year behind bars.

In 2020, he was jailed for fraud and following his release in August 2021, he began speaking out about prison reform work. "These relationships aren't that common - and are usually conducted in secret - but they are common enough that any man who's spent time as a prisoner will know of officers who crossed the line in their relationships with prisoners," he told the Mirror.

"It's not just sexual relationships, although those naturally get the most attention." David explained that prisoners and officers may cross boundaries as friends or allies. He said, " Well-meaning officers can be manipulated into believing they are alone in 'helping' a prisoner, and favours end up being exchanged."

He continued: "It's helpful to understand that prison wings are a weird, intense environment in which prisoners and officers can become traumatised. After 14 years of cuts to the prison system, many wings are staffed entirely by inexperienced officers. Good and bad-intentioned officers can both enter into inappropriate relationships. These bad apples should be filtered out by a robust vetting procedure, but this does not seem to exist at present."

Hayley Jones, of Strood in Kent, will be sentenced on February 4 after she has been psychologically assessed.