A 61-year-old pharmacy technician has been locked up for over six years after smuggling drugs and mobile phone SIM cards into HMP Bristol.
Tanya Petrie Caught Red-Handed
Tanya Petrie, from Worle, was sentenced to six years and three months at Bristol Crown Court on Monday, 16 February. She was found guilty of conspiring to bring list A prohibited items—hard drugs—into the prison. She’d already admitted bringing in list B items, including tobacco and less serious drugs.
The court heard Petrie worked inside HMP Bristol and used her position to smuggle contraband behind bars.
How the Smuggling Operation Unravelled
- On 17 October 2023, police spotted Petrie collecting a suspicious package from a wheelie bin in a Bristol garden.
- Casey Collins, 23, from Knowle West, lived at the address and allegedly placed the package for Petrie to pick up.
- Petrie then went to the prison, where officers detained and searched her.
- She handed over a cling film-wrapped parcel containing cocaine, other class B drugs, and tobacco.
Further phone data analysis revealed two numbers inside the prison, one linked to inmate Kyle Joyner, 32, who used it to contact Collins, suggesting a prison-wide smuggling network.
Co-Conspirators Handed Jail Terms
Petrie admitted in police interviews that she’d been collecting money from the wheelie bin and used it to buy SIM cards from a local garage—smuggling them into HMP Bristol for inmates.
More from Bristol Crown Court
View all Bristol Crown Court coverage
- Ex-Cop Guilty of Shocking Strip Search Sex Crimes
- Teen Denies Murder of 9-Year-Old Girl in Shocking Somerset Stabbing
- Nursery Worker Jailed for 30 Years Over Sickening Abuse of Toddlers
- Bristol Man Caught After £40,000 Shoplifting Spree
- Double Rapist from Bradford on Avon Must Serve Full Sentence After Failed Appeal
- Drug Dealer Locked Up for Four Years in Bristol
