A besotted prison officer who was filmed entering a cupboard with an inmate is behind bars herself after admitting she had ‘fallen in love’ with him.
Morgan Farr Varney’s illicit relationship was exposed after CCTV footage showed the pair ‘loitering’ together at Lindholme Prison near Doncaster in South Yorkshire.
After being arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office, the 24-year-old admitted she had ‘f****ed her life up’.
Farr Varney – who also appeared on This Morning talking about her ‘online dentistry nightmare’ – has been jailed for ten months.
The case comes as a record number of female prison guards have been fired for affairs with male inmates – with 29 given the sack in the past three years.
That compares to just nine women who lost their jobs for the same offence between 2017 and 2019.
In January, former Wandsworth prison officer Linda De Sousa Abreu was jailed for 15 months after a film of her having sex with an inmate was shared online.
After joining the Prison Service in April 2022, Farr Varney was given anti-corruption training – including how to spot attempted manipulation by inmates.
Ex-prison officer Morgan Farr Varney, 24, admitted to police she had ‘fallen in love’ with an inmate while working at Lindholme Prison near Doncaster
Suspicions about Morgan Farr Varney’s illicit relationship with the unnamed inmate were raised after they were spotted ‘loitering’ on a wing at HMP Lindholme
But suspicions were raised after she was spotted with the unnamed prisoner on a wing at Lindholme, police said, and she was arrested in January 2023.
An investigation revealed a slew of love letters between the pair, including in the inmate’s cell at the category C jail and in Farr Varney’s bedroom.
CCTV footage also showed the pair entering a cupboard.
Interviewed by police, Farr Varney admitted she had ‘proper fallen in love’ with him.
Following her arrest, she resigned from her role – but the relationship continued despite her boyfriend being moved to Wealstun Prison near Wetherby in West Yorkshire.
Officers found a series of photographs of Farr Varney in the inmate’s new cell.
At Sheffield Crown Court, Farr Varney, of Stainforth, near Doncaster, was jailed for ten months after admitting misconduct in a public office last month.
She appeared on This Morning last year to discuss facing huge bills after buying braces from an online dental firm only for it to fold partway through her treatment.
Detective Constable Scott Jarvis, of South Yorkshire Police’s Prison Anti-Corruption Unit, said the sentencing should send a ‘clear message’ to warders considering embarking on affairs.
Disgraced former prison officer Morgan Farr Varney – who appeared on This Morning about the dangers of online dentistry firms – is herself now starting a ten-month jail sentence
Farr Varney appeared on ITV’s This Morning in 2023 to talk about her ‘dentistry nightmare’
Farr Varney admitted she had ‘fallen in love’ with an inmate after starting work at Lindholme Prison near Doncaster in 2022
‘We take any reports of improper relationships between prison staff and inmates incredibly seriously and conduct thorough investigations to ensure those who are guilty of these offences are brought to justice,’ he said.
‘These types of relationships are thankfully rare, but when they do happen, they threaten to undermine the reputation of the prison service and other hard-working prison officers who abide by the rules and regulations attached to the job.
‘I hope this sentencing sends out a clear message to any prison officers thinking of committing similar offences that if you engage in this type of criminality, you will be investigated by police and you will be brought to justice.’
