Strangeways guard jailed for 'romance' with armed robber

Judge ignores plea over officer who claimed complaints were 'malicious'

- ANDREW BARDSLEY

A FEMALE prison officer has been jailed after engaging in a 'romantic relationship' with an inmate armed robber who she described as being her 'soulmate.'

Former Strangeways prison guard Claire Lloyd has been locked up for eight months for misconduct in a public office, after becoming embroiled in an inappropriate relationship with Andrew Hall. Prosecutors accepted that their relationship did not become sexual, but said the pair would declare their love for each other.

The couple exchanged hundreds of phone calls and text messages, with some calls lasting up to two hours. Lloyd turned a blind eye to the fact that Hall was using an illicit phone in jail.

When rumours began to spread in the prison about their relationship, Lloyd, 47, claimed that the complaints were 'malicious' and that other staff had a 'vendetta' against her.