One court, one day, 15 inmates accused over SNP’s prison mobiles

They allegedly misused taxpayer-funded phones

FIFTEEN inmates from one prison have appeared in court on the same day for illegal use of mobile phones issued under a flagship Scottish Government initiative.

The men, from privately run Addiewell Prison, West Lothian, were accused of possessing illegal sim cards which are used in jail phones – flying in the face of rules drawn up under the SNP’s £4.1 million pandemic roll-out to make up for prison visits being halted.

Latest figures show a staggering 4,877 acts of misuse have been reported – an average of five a day – since the scheme began. Just after the 15 prisoners appeared at Livingston Sheriff Court, one, Robert Warnock, was revealed to be the ringleader – from his cell – of a firebomb murder plot.

The High Court in Glasgow heard that Warnock, 26, who is serving an 11-year sentence for trying to kill a woman and her partner, had used a phone to ‘act like a gangster’ and order friends outside jail to carry out a series of attacks. As a result, he had a further 15 years and three months added to his sentence.

The increasing number of cases involving smuggled sim cards has led to sheriffs warning that uncontrolled use of phones by convicted criminals poses a serious risk to the prison service and the public.

Last night, Scottish Tory justice spokesman Jamie Greene said: ‘Right from the start, this SNP scheme has proven to be an absolute disaster. Not only are costs spiralling out of control, the number of incidents where the phones are being used inappropriately is rapidly on the increase too.

‘This policy has led to dangerous consequences, including drug deals and murder attempts being conducted from behind bars.’

Prison-issue phones contain an official sim card which limits calls to a list of approved numbers that allows convicts to communicate with close family and lawyers.

But inmates found ways to replace the prison-issue cards with unrestricted sims, which because of their tiny size can easily be smuggled into jail in body orifices.

Among the 15 inmates in court last Tuesday were a murdering drug dealer, two rapists and a man jailed for setting his aggressive Staffordshire bull terrier on police.

When the cases called for the first time last week, only housebreaker Jamie Morrison, 32, pleaded guilty to possessing a personal communication device in prison. He had four months added to his sentence.

Seven of the other accused pleaded not guilty to the charges and had trials fixed for next year. The other seven, including Warnock, had their cases continued without plea.

Last year, Livingston sheriff John MacRitchie warned the high number of smuggled sim cards could be used to pervert justice and intimidate witnesses.

He described it as ‘a major security threat’ and an attack on the justice system itself.

The prison service said not all the incidents related to criminality, as the total includes handsets damaged by inmates.

But that may be due to attempts to break the seal that prevents access to the sim card slot.

‘SNP scheme has been an absolute disaster’