Female prison officer exchanged more than 5,000 illicit Snapchat messages with inmate at maximum security jail

A female prison officer had a secret six-month relationship with an inmate at a maximum security prison and sent him sexually explicit selfies over Snapchat, a sentencing hearing has been told. Jade Morris, 37, and Jerome Nunes, 35, exchanged over 5,000 messages with each other during their 'intimate relationship' between July 2022 and January 2023.Morris had been working at HMP Long Lartin, a category A prison in Worcestershire, where drugs linchpin Nunes was serving a 12-year sentence at the time.A court heard prison bosses' suspicions were aroused after Nunes attempted to cover up their fling by hurling a phone out of his cell window.Police found thousands of social media messages as well as explicit photos exchanged between the pair.Mother-of-two Morris, from Holmer, Herefordshire, had been going through a divorce with her husband at the time, who was serving in the Armed Forces.She pleaded guilty in March to misconduct in a public office and to encouraging Nunes to use an illegal phone.At her sentencing hearing at Birmingham Crown Court on Thursday, Cathlyn Orchard, prosecuting, said: 'Jade Morris was employed as a prison custody officer at HMP Long Lartin, a category A prison. Jade Morris, pictured at a previous court appearance, conducted a six-month relationship with inmate Jerome Nunes Jerome Nunes was jailed for 12 years in 2019 for his role in an eight-strong gang which was responsible for distributing £2m of cocaine through South Wales Morris had been working at HMP Long Lartin, a category A prison in Worcestershire, where drugs lynchpin Nunes was serving a 12-year sentence at the time'Jerome Nunes was a serving prisoner at Long Lartin - he was sentenced in 2019 to 12 years imprisonment for conspiracy to supply cocaine.'In 2022, West Midlands Police investigated the conduct of a prison officer, Jade Morris.'It transpired that she was engaged in an intimate relationship with Nunes using multiple mobile numbers.'On October 25, 2022 Nunes' cell was searched and he threw a sock containing a mobile phone out of his cell window.'That device was recovered along with a phone charger and a phone reader.'The day after Morris was seen speaking to Nunes and after finishing her shift she called in sick.Miss Orchard said the investigation revealed that the pair had been communicating with each other over WhatsApp and Snapchat and that over 5,000 messages were recovered. Much of the contact had been late at night or in the early hours of the morning.Police also recovered a letter written by Nunes to Morris 'which confirmed they had an intimate relationship'.She said it had been 'implicit' they had been sharing explicit images.When officers went to Morris's home she had refused to give them the PIN for the device and later denied she had been in phone contact with a prisoner at Long Lartin.In another interview she claimed Nunes's number had been passed on to her and that she had been 'intimidated and frightened' into contacting him. Nunes of Newport, pleaded guilty at Birmingham Magistrates' Court to two offences under the Prison Act 1952 for possessing and using an unauthorised mobile phoneMiss Orchard said: 'There was a very substantial amount of communication between the two using multiple phones and numbers.'Attempts were made to keep the contact secret by using fake names and deleting messages.'Nunes was jailed for 12 years in 2019 for his involvement in an eight-man gang which was responsible for bringing in and distributing £2million of cocaine throughout Newport, South Wales, and the surrounding areas.Nunes of Newport, pleaded guilty at Birmingham Magistrates' Court to two offences under the Prison Act 1952 for possessing and using an unauthorised mobile phone.Holly Sims, defending Morris, a mother of two young children, aged eight and nine, said at the time she had been caring for her father who had died and that she was going through a divorce with her husband.She said there was no evidence of any physical contact between her and Nunes. She added Morris had also been struggling with her job in the prison and was 'ashamed and embarrassed' about her behaviour.Matthew Bolt, defending Nunes, said he had already been punished in prison for what he had done and that since being released from his sentence, almost two years ago, he had settled in well and had started a small food business.Judge Peter Carr adjourned sentence until Friday morning and remanded both defendants in custody.Georgina Davies, from the Crown Prosecution Service, said previously: 'Prison officers hold positions of significant trust and responsibility.'The public are entitled to expect that those working within the prison system will act with integrity and always maintain clear professional boundaries.'This case involved a sustained and deliberate breach of that trust. Jade Morris knew that prisoners should not have access to mobile phones yet chose to engage in a prolonged relationship with Nunes, directly facilitating his criminal offending and undermining the security of the prison in which she worked.'The Crown Prosecution Service worked closely with the police to build a case which reflected the seriousness of this misconduct, leaving both defendants no option but to plead guilty.'We hope this case sends a clear message that those who abuse positions of public trust will be held to account.'