Elyse Hibbs, from Newbridge in Gwent, was arrested after meeting the prisoner while providing medical treatment at HM Prison Parc in Bridgend. The prisoner used his mother and a friend to track down the 25-year-old on Instagram, which led to the pair exchanging messages and phone calls for several weeks, according to the court. According to Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe, prison staff suspected the inmate was having an inappropriate relationship with another worker in Bridgend, so he was transferred 205 miles away to Manchester. However, investigators discovered Hibbs’ phone number on his inmate approved call list. Mr Cobbe said in court on Tuesday (October 18): “Having been moved, the inmate’s calls were monitored in HMP Manchester and it was quite clear the inmate’s relationship with this defendant was being nurtured by the inmate.” “He contacted the defendant numerous times, the majority of which occurred while she was employed at HMP Parc.” Hibbs admitted to public office misconduct. He also described how Hibbs would call the inmate’s friend, who would hold “two phones together so they could talk to each other” in a “three-way call.” “The calls between them were flirtatious,” he added. They talk about the prison, the staff, he tells her he loves her, and she tells him he doesn’t know her well enough to love her. “She joked about going to Manchester in two weeks and visiting him.” “He pressed her on seeing her while he was away. He told her he wanted to thank her for taking care of him at Parc.” Hibbs, a qualified health professional employed by security firm G4S, told the court she suspected the inmate was using a smuggled phone to contact her and feared she would lose her job. In a later call, they talk about a time when the inmate had an iPhone hidden in his bottom,” Mr Cobbe said. He tells her he loves her, and she tells him she loves him as well.” “The calls contained references to the defendant’s current partner, and the inmate repeatedly implied that he would replace him and be in a relationship with her.” “She told him she didn’t want him messaging her because she was worried and didn’t trust him.” The pair would communicate on Instagram through the inmate’s friend’s account. Hibbs was arrested a week after leaving Bridgend Prison in July 2021. She admitted to exchanging text messages with the inmate. She told police she was afraid to break off contact with him because he had previously threatened her. “She explained that she and the inmate were never in any kind of sexual relationship,” Mr Cobbe said. “She admitted she should have reported the incident, but she got too involved and couldn’t get out.” Adam Sharp, defending, stated that the inmate was known within the system to be a “particularly manipulative individual,” adding that “she was young, impressionable, inexperienced, and vulnerable to the malign influence of the inmate who sought to exploit her.” Hibbs had “dedicated a significant part of her adult life” to nursing, according to Mr Sharp, but her conviction meant she would be barred from the profession. Tracey Lloyd-Clarke, Recorder of Cardiff, told Hibbs: “You knew what you were doing was wrong, you had training, but you went ahead and formed what was clearly an emotional relationship with this prisoner. “Despite your youth, you held a position of responsibility as a nurse and a member of the prison staff.” Despite advice from a colleague and training, you failed to report the initial contact. “You initially engaged in a flirtatious relationship, you failed to report the ongoing contact, and you failed to report that this inmate had an unlawful device on him and in custody.”
