A Lancashire prison officer has been arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office.

On Friday, officers from the Regional Prison Intelligence Unit at the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit (NWROCU) arrested a prison officer based at HMP Garth in Preston.

Following enquiries, the 24-year-old woman from Preston was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office and was taken to a police station for questioning.

Detective Inspector Tanya Kitchen from NWROCU said: “We can confirm that following a joint investigation between the Prison Service and NWROCU, a member of staff from HMP Garth has today been arrested.

“Corruption of any kind will not be tolerated and we continue to work closely in partnership to ensure anyone who breaks the rules is brought to justice.

“We would like to encourage members of staff working at prisons to report anyone they suspected are involved corrupt activity, so that we can act on it immediately and put offenders before the courts."

At the beginning of July a 23-year-old woman from Preston, who was based at HMP Preston, was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in a public office and possession with intent to supply Class B drugs. 

She was taken to a police station on July 6 for questioning and was released under investigation pending further enquiries.

NWROCU Detective Inspector Tanya Kitchen said: "We can confirm that following a joint investigation between the Prison Service and NWROCU, a member of staff from HMP Preston was arrested on Tuesday July 6."