These are the faces of an aid worker and the two prisoners for whom she smuggled drugs and phones into prison after falling 'in love'.
Amy Portwood and Adrienne Juniper, from Leigh, fell "in love" with convicted Manchester robbers Darren McAndrew and Philip Phythian and took contraband to the prison where they worked. They also exchanged a series of 'overtly sexual' text messages and WhatsApp messages with their boyfriends behind bars, whose initials they reportedly had tattooed on their bodies.
Liverpool Crown Court heard last week that Phythian had served a six-year prison sentence at the end of 2021 for theft and possession of a bladed article in a public place at HMP Risley in Warrington, while McAndrew was given an extended 12-year prison sentence for theft and aggravated vehicle taking , reports the Liverpool Echo.
READ MORE: Resident calls police after waking up to see stranger's car blocking their drivewayPhilip Astbury, prosecuting, described how Portwood and Juniper were "regular visitors" to the category C site as care workers for contractor Care Plus and were responsible for the care of a disabled inmate called John Kelly. However, they instead became involved in "romantic relationships" with Phythian and McAndrew.
It was shown that Portwood's phone had exchanged 1,134 phone calls with the former over a one-month period, as well as 294 text messages. The two had also shared more than 1,000 WhatsApp messages between November 2021 and January 2022, including images that were subsequently deleted from her device. Mr Astbury said some of these messages were "overtly sexual in content", while others referred to "small phones" and "snorting".
Juniper and McAndrew called each other 60 times and exchanged 1,598 text messages, some of which were again "sexual in nature". These included the inmate sending topless photos of himself to the staff member.
When the two mothers went to work on the morning of January 7, 2022, a drug sniffer dog allegedly "showed interest" in Juniper and jumped up at her. However, she 'passed this on' by saying she was wearing perfume and was allowed to proceed to prison.
The 35-year-old and Portwood then visited Kelly's cell, where Phythian and McAndrew were "hanging out nearby" before speaking to the two employees. CCTV footage showed the women taking their patient to the shower in his wheelchair, which had a "misplaced" blue body warmer on the back.
This item of clothing was searched upon return and contained five separate parcels full of illegal goods. Their contents included a quantity of tobacco, a mobile phone, two USB sticks, cannabis resin worth up to £2,880 in prison, cannabis leaves worth as much as £1,850, £600 worth of cocaine, crack cocaine worth £200 and £240 heroin.
A search of Juniper's home revealed £3,530 cash, as well as around £500 in Turkish lira. A further £348 was seized from a drawer in Portwood's bedroom.
The court heard the 41-year-old - of Hughes Avenue in Orford, Warrington - had the letter 'P' tattooed on her forearm in an apparent reference to Phythian. Likewise, Juniper had a tattoo of the letter "D" on one of her fingers.
'She foolishly got involved in what she thought was a relationship'
Juniper, of St Helens Road in Leigh, has no previous convictions. Philip Tully, defending, told the court: "Both of her children are children with complex needs and if she were to receive an immediate custodial sentence the impact on the children and their care and welfare is likely to be significant.
"She had worked as a caregiver at that company for eight or nine months before this offense was committed without any incident. In fact, she was thought of a lot.
'Ms Portwood, who had begun a relationship with a co-accused, told her that someone was romantically interested in her. She foolishly got involved in what she thought was a relationship with him.
"She was experiencing difficulties in her long-term relationship and was flattered by the approach. This led to her agreeing to take tobacco and, gradually, other items into prison.
"This action was completely out of character. She is someone with a good work ethic and despite difficulties in her personal life, she has worked and provided for her family financially.
"She is someone who has issues with her mental health. She comes from a supportive and close-knit family and has expressed shame and disgust at her actions and the pain she has caused everyone."
Portwood had one conviction for unrelated offenses in 2003, for which she was fined. Appearing on her behalf, Gareth Bellis said she had been "blinded by love and affection" and subjected to a "form of grooming to some extent".
But he added: "She went into this with her eyes open. It is clear that she has shown genuine remorse.
"Your Honor will take into account how she became involved in these crimes. You could say, but for the others she wouldn't have been involved.'
Portwood and Juniper pleaded guilty to transferring prohibited articles into a prison and possessing heroin, cocaine, cannabis, cannabis resin and steroids with intent to supply. The first nodded and became tearful when she was locked up for 22 months.
Juniper was given a 22-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, plus 160 hours of unpaid work and a requirement for rehabilitation activities of up to 30 days. She burst into tears as she was spared an immediate prison sentence.
'He felt quite lonely'
McAndrew and Phythian, who both have no fixed address but are from Manchester, admitted transferring prohibited items into a prison and possessing a prohibited item in a prison. They appeared via video link at HMP Forest Bank and were each jailed for a further three years and nine months on Thursday.
Phythian has a total of 18 previous convictions for 36 offenses - including 10 years in prison for theft, wounding with intent and aggravated burglary in 2009. Gemma Maxwell, defending, said the 33-year-old had spent a year in custody after he was pushed back on the licence, adding: "It is admitted that the suspect has a poor record but he has no drug cases."
"He has taken steps to rehabilitate himself. He has taken a position of trust within the prison."
McAndrew's criminal record includes 10 charges for 22 offences. These include robberies in 2000, 2003 and 2016 and intentional wounding and possession of a prohibited firearm in 2008.
Counsel for 40-year-old Milena Bennett said: "He served a long sentence in prison under Covid restrictions. He felt quite lonely because he had no visits from his family.
"Rather than assaulting or grooming the co-accused, he will say there was a mutual attraction between the two of them and refutes any form of intimidation or coercion. He initially started asking for tobacco because he lacked it while in custody.
"That led to the request to bring cannabis for him for personal use. Unfortunately, due to the fact that others noticed the relationship between the two of them, he was asked to ask for other items to be brought to the prison, and he did so.
"He deeply regrets his actions. Not long after committing the crimes, he was released on license. He was back with his partner and children. That all came crashing down when he was recalled.
'He started offending at a very young age. He led a very dysfunctional life, came from a dysfunctional family and ended up in the wrong circle.
"This has resulted in him spending more time in custody than in the community. He has made efforts to begin rehabilitation and has a job as a cleaner in custody."
"You have both been extremely naive."
Sentencing, Judge Garrett Byrne said: 'I am of the view that Mr Phythian and Mr McAndrew took advantage of the opportunity, and that there was a degree of manipulation or persuasion. You, Portwood and Juniper, have abused your position of trust as care providers providing care to prisoners. .
"Both of you have been extremely naive, to say the least. You knew very well that these things were not allowed to be brought into the prison.
"But you did it anyway, no doubt because you let your infatuation with your co-defendants dominate your decision-making. These items are valuable currency within the prison system and can be used as tools of extortion or power."
Regarding Juniper, the judge added: "In this case there are two children who are assessed as extremely vulnerable and have complex needs. For these reasons, I believe that Ms. Juniper's case can be distinguished and I feel able to suspend the hearing period. imprisonment."
