A 'very good-looking' female prison officer who had phone sex with a convicted gangster insisted on wearing tight-fitting trousers to work, a court has heard, as it was revealed she is also accused of having a relationship with a second prisoner.
Chief of Security Dan Hayman said Ruth Shmylo chose not to wear a prison uniform, but instead wore her own “naked pants,” which left “little to the imagination.”
Shmylo was questioned by bosses about her 'flirty' behavior just months after starting her role at HMP Parc in Bridgend, South Wales. She denies the charges against her, which relate to misconduct in public office.
The 26-year-old has admitted having phone sex with drug dealer prisoner Harri Pullen and meeting his mother during their alleged romance behind bars before being taken 200 miles to HMP Manchester. The romance was discovered after phone conversations were recorded in the weeks after she left her job.
The officer was also seen on CCTV kissing an inmate, an act she said she was “ashamed of” and called a “silly mistake.”
Ruth Shmylo, 26, is accused of having phone sex with inmate Harri Pullen and meeting his mother during their alleged romance behind bars
Chief of Security Dan Hayman said Shmylo chose not to wear a prison uniform, but instead wore her own “naked pants”
Shmylo claims to have felt 'under pressure' and 'trapped' by Pullen (pictured), a convicted drug dealer
Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe said there had been 20 “intelligence reports” at the prison between January and April 2021 involving concerns about Shmylo, including her uniform.
Mr Cobbe said Mr Hayman had asked Shmylo if it would not be better to wear trousers that were 'a little bigger and not as fitted'.
Mr Hayman said: 'The concern was that Ms Shmylo was wearing trousers which she had purchased outside the uniform supply process and which fitted exceptionally well and were not considered appropriate.'
Mr Cobbe asked: 'What was going on?'
Mr Hayman said: 'Trousers that were tight or almost tight enough.'
He added: 'There is a large cohort of male prisoners and a young female officer or any officer wearing inappropriate clothing is something we want to challenge – especially trousers that are so fitted that they leave little to the imagination.
'There were other trousers available, but she wasn't happy with how they fit on her body – or how they looked.'
Shmylo was also questioned by bosses about her behavior towards other inmates while working as a custody officer between August 2020 and April 2021.
Mr Hayman said Shmylo was questioned by anti-corruption teams in prison about her alleged relations with another unnamed prisoner.
Mr Hayman told the court Shmylo was questioned about reports that she had searched for another prisoner on Facebook with a “second phone” he feared he had inside.
Mr Hayman said: “This related to another prisoner who we had reports Ms Shmylo was associated with. Ms. Shmylo told us the only connection was through social media because that person was a friend of a friend, but she acknowledged that she had searched for him on Facebook.”
Shmylo was also questioned by bosses about her behavior towards other inmates while working as a custody officer between August 2020 and April 2021.
Ms Shmylo was also questioned by bosses about her behavior towards other prisoners while she worked as a custody officer at HMP Parc in Bridgend, South Wales, between August 2020 and April 2021.
Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe said there had been 20 “intelligence reports” into the prison between January and April 2021 involving concerns around Shmylo, including her uniform.
Female prison officer Ruth Shmylo, 26, had secret phone sex with Pullen and even met his mother, a court has heard
Prosecutor Matthew Cobbe said Pullen and Shmylo's alleged affair began after he gave Shmylo a mobile number on a piece of paper.
Mr Cobbe asked Mr Hayman about a range of issues Shmylo was questioned about by prison bosses, including a relationship with another prisoner, as well as other concerns including her use of social media, her relationship with Harri Pullen and 'the way she dealt with other prisoners.'
Shmylo was also questioned about “professional boundaries between staff and inmates, excessive familiarity with inmates and flirtatious behavior toward inmates.”
Mr Hayman said there were also other safety concerns that led to Shmylo's eventual dismissal.
He said: 'There were reports of conversations she had with prisoners. She was observed to be secretive, whispering and deliberately trying to hold conversations out of earshot.”
Mr Cobbe said there were also discussions about Shmylo's relationship with another inmate – who was moved to another wing due to concerns about their proximity.
When asked why Mr Pullen was transferred to Manchester HMP, Mr Hayman said: 'We noticed a spiral in Mr Pullen's behavior following Ms Shmylo's departure from prison.
'When management and staff asked Mr Pullen about the reasons for his behaviour, he explained that his partner had been out on weekends for about five months – as well as on weekends socially – and had been out with other men.
'There was an inference that he believed the relationship was coming to an end and that was the spiral in his behaviour.
“He was describing his partner, who I thought was Miss Shmylo. He gave a description of her, indicated when her birthday was, where she lived, and made it clear to the staff who it was, knowing that she had left prison at that time.
“He wasn't happy that we fired Ms. Shmylo.”
Shmylo, a former guardian at the 1,652-capacity HMP Park in Bridgend, south Wales, said Pullen would contact her “pretty much every day”.
Claire Wilks, defending Shmylo, said Pullen was a “security risk” and a “dominant character” within the prison, who was at one point found with a “makeshift pistol”
Mr Cobbe said: 'She admitted during her interview that she had had phone sex with the prisoner.
'She explained that it was mainly the inmate saying things to her, noting that 'I listened to most of it.'
“That means she was actively engaged in phone sex with the inmate – or part of it.
Claire Wilks, defending, said Shmylo was a 'very good-looking 23-year-old' who was clearly at risk of being manipulated by Pullen.
She said: 'He was a convicted drug dealer, it was an operation run by the intelligence services, he is a member of an organized crime group. All these factors made him a significant risk and while in custody he was known to be a risk.”
Ms Wilks said Mr Pullen had “illegal phones” in prison and that “at one point he was thought to be in possession of an improvised weapon”.
Mr Pullen and Shmylo's alleged affair began after he gave the female officer a mobile number on a piece of paper and she then called him for 'teenage style' chats.
Mr Cobbe said she should have reported Mr Pullen because he had a secret phone behind bars, but decided to call him instead.
He said the Pullens would contact Shmylo “daily,” having phone sex with her and calling her his “ma'am.”
He contacted her on her birthday and wished her “Happy Birthday Princess Girl” and arranged for his mother to meet her.
The trial, expected to last five days, continues.