Glam prison officer felt ‘forced’ to have phone sex with lag who ‘terrified’ her

Prison officer Ruth Shmylo felt "forced" to have phone sex with a prisoner as he "terrified" her, a court heard.

The 26-year-old is accused of having an inappropriate relationship with inmate Harri Pullen, who was behind bars at HMP Parc in Bridgend while Shmylo was working there.

A trial at Cardiff Crown Court heard the prison officer felt like she had no choice but to go along with Pullen's requests, WalesOnline reports.

The court heard the transcript of an interview between Shmylo and an officer at Queens Road Police station in Bridgend following her arrest. In it, Shmylo said: "I tried to stop contact with him and at one point he was calling me every day and I was trying to ignore his calls. It was just non stop. I spoke to him to pacify him. I was terrified of him.

"Even to the point when he went to Manchester prison – I told him I was moving to Australia and out of the country hoping that would try to get him to stop. He just wouldn't get it…I said: ‘You are making me ill. Please, I am begging you, please leave me alone.’"

The court later heard how she told the officer she did not "have feelings" for Pullen. She added: "I was scared of him. [He was known as] someone to take seriously. Everyone knew what he was like. He was feared by staff and feared by prisoners."

She described to the officer during the interview how Pullen threatened to kill her cat. She added: "I thought about telling my sister and my mum. All the thoughts went through my head. I thought I would just quit my job, but I thought it would just make him angry. Even when they sacked me from the prison, it was like I abandoned him."

Regarding the phone sex, she said: "He kept trying to say rude things on the phone to me and I was saying no. At one point I cried on the phone and I said I don't want to do this with you. This is disgusting. It angered me. He said: ‘Do you think I'm disgusting? Do you think I'm hanging?’ He made it all about him."

Daniel Hayman, head of security at the prison, told the court earlier this week Shmylo had training on how to avoid conditioning, manipulation and exploitation at the hands of inmates.

He said: "They may attempt to corner staff in a manner that might force them to be separated from their colleagues, to force them to do something they might not otherwise do."

A meeting between Hayman and defendant Shmylo was conducted in January 2021, and her employment was terminated in April 2021 after she failed to pass her probationary period.

Shmylo, of Lewis Street, Treforest, denies one count of misconduct in a public office. The trial continues.

For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletter by clicking here.

Source: Read Full Article