A young female prison officer has confessed to engaging in an improper relationship with a prisoner, potentially leading to her incarceration. Megan Breen, 23, revealed that she had an unauthorized romantic involvement with an inmate while on duty at HMP Usk and HMP Prescoed, both located in Gwent, South Wales. Initially, Breen denied the affair with the unidentified prisoner.
The illicit relationship reportedly occurred between February and May 2022. The charge against Breen states that she misused her position as a prison officer by engaging in a relationship with a prisoner, breaching the public’s trust in her role.
Breen, who resides in Newport, Gwent, was granted bail but was cautioned that she could face imprisonment during her upcoming sentencing hearing. Judge Carl Harrison has requested a pre-sentence report and emphasized that all sentencing options are under consideration.
During the court proceedings at Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court, a separate accusation of unauthorized computer access by Breen will not be pursued.
HMP Usk, a Category C prison housing 280 inmates, is managed in conjunction with nearby open prison HMP Prescoed, where offenders serve the final phase of their sentences before release.
According to data from the Ministry of Justice, 19 prison staff members were charged with misconduct in public office between 2023 and 2024, marking the highest number of such incidents in the past decade.
In a recent case, Tracy Boateng, 27, was sentenced to 12 months in prison (suspended for 24 months) after admitting to misconduct in a public office for engaging in a relationship with an inmate at HMP Pentonville.
Similarly, Katie Evans, a 26-year-old mother, was imprisoned for 21 months for being manipulated into an intimate relationship with an inmate and providing him with confidential information and financial assistance.
Earlier this year, Linda De Sousa Abreu, a former HMP Wandsworth prison officer, received a 15-month jail term for engaging in sexual activity with an inmate within a prison cell, an incident that was widely circulated on social media.