A female prison officer who was in a year-long relationship with a convicted murderer smuggled drugs for him, it has been revealed.
Abigail Laidlaw, a 28-year-old prison officer at HMP Manchester, was sentenced to five years and three months in prison after she pleaded guilty to four counts following an intensive investigation into her ‘intimate relationship’ with convicted shooter Troy Beckford.
An investigation by the North West Regional Organised Crime Unit (NWROCU) found ‘daily communication’ between Laidlaw, Beckford and a third unnamed prisoner at HMP Manchester, also known as Strangeways.
Cops found them in a WhatsApp chat group, where Laidlaw ‘discussed smuggling items such as aftershave, cannabis, and iPhones into the prison in exchange for cash’. One text message the disgraced prison officer sent to the murderer read: ‘You’ve got what you want really, drugs brought in for you every day.’
Beckford, 33, was jailed for life in June, 2016, after he was convicted of the murder of Kieran McGrath.
McGrath, who was 26 when he was killed, was gunned down in the car park of the Sheldon Arms pub in Ashton-under-Lyne, Tameside, on October 4, 2014.
Beckford, who was given a minimum of 30 years in prison for the murder, was under Laidlaw’s care while he was at Strangeways.
But the cops’ investigation revealed that contact between Laidlaw and Beckford spanned almost a year, with ‘up to 40’ interactions a day.
The police, who began investigating Laidlaw in July 2021, said she was confronted by her manager for wearing Beckford’s watch in November 2021.
Abigail Laidlaw, a 28-year-old prison officer at HMP Manchester, was sentenced to five years and three months in prison
Convicted shooter Troy Beckford (pictured) convinced Laidlaw to smuggle drugs into the prison
The illicit relationship took place at HMP Manchester (pictured)
Text messages, uncovered following a search of the corrupt prison officer’s home in Bury, Manchester, revealed she had ‘regularly secreted’ drugs including cocaine into the prison in exchange for gifts and cash payments from the outside.
This search of her phone also revealed ‘searches relating to drug quantities, money laundering, and Beckford’s name,’ added the NWROCU.
‘Police uncovered messages between Laidlaw and Beckford discussing the smuggling of drugs, including cannabis and cocaine, into HMP Manchester for him in exchange for payment. They also frequently spoke about their relationship and future plans.
‘The messages clearly indicated that Laidlaw was involved in an intimate relationship with Beckford, including daily kissing whilst she was at work. Additionally, the messages revealed that Laidlaw regularly secreted the drugs including cocaine, on her person and smuggled them into the prison to evade prison security and deliver them to Beckford.’
In August 2021, Beckford sent Laidlaw an image of cannabis blocks and asked her to ‘sort this thing out’. Police said she agreed. Then, a month later, Laidlaw told Beckford in a message: ‘You’ve got what you want really, drugs brought in for you every day.’
She is said to have added: ‘I’ll bring stuff in for you and leave it at that – we don’t need to be in a relationship.’
Laidlaw, who was arrested in May 2022, was found with £2,000 cash and two iPhones.
Detective Inspector Brian Morley, from the NWROCU, said: ‘Laidlaw received training on prison corruption and was fully aware that her actions were wrong. Her behaviour not only endangered herself, but also her colleagues and inmates.’
Laidlaw’s manager at Strangeways confronted her for wearing Beckford’s watch
Det Insp Morley said Laidlaw conveyed drugs into the prison ‘for a considerable period of time’ in return for gifts and cash payments
The corrupt prison officer pleaded guilty to misconduct in a public office, two counts of conspiracy to convey a prohibited article into prison and possession of criminal property.
Beckford, meanwhile, was sentenced to six years, concurrent to the life sentence he is already serving, after admitting a charge of conspiracy to convey a prohibited article into prison.
Det Insp Morley said Laidlaw conveyed drugs into the prison ‘for a considerable period of time’ in return for gifts and cash payments.
‘The presence of drugs in prison severely undermines the good order and discipline of the establishment, often leading to violence, self-harm, bullying, and debt,’ he said.
‘I want to reassure the honest, dedicated, and hardworking prison staff that we will continue to take decisive action against any member of staff who engages in corrupt activities. We strongly encourage anyone with information about corruption in our prisons to come forward and report it’, he added.
The last year has seen a string of female prison officers get put behind bars over their illicit relationships with prisoners.
In December, PC Lorna Pennycook, 38, was jailed for four years after feeding secret information to convicted criminal Anthony Kennedy to try to hold their relationship together.
She became ‘infatuated’ with him after meeting him on a dating side in 2016, and leaked sensitive police information about him and his associates, as well as crime in the Sandwell area of Birmingham.
Kennedy had 18 previous convictions for offences including vehicle theft and possession of criminal property.
Recovered messages between the pair showed that when Kennedy first found out that Pennycook was a police officer in 2017, he wanted to end the relationship.
PC Lorna Pennycook, 38, became ‘infatuated’ with a criminal after meeting him on a dating site
Pennycook fed Anthony Kennedy sensitive police information about him and his associates, as well as crime in the Sandwell area of Birmingham
Following her arrest, Pennycook claimed that Kennedy had ruined her life and said she was acting under duress
She responded by telling him that she had ‘accepted everything’ about him, adding: ‘You don’t choose who you love’.
Pennycook illegally accessed the West Midlands Police computer system hundreds of times to pass information onto Kennedy between 2017 and 2021.
She would tell Kennedy to delete messages between them, and in February 2021, asked Kennedy to buy a ‘burner’ phone for her to use for their contact.
Kennedy had been involved in two lorry thefts on 22 August 2017 and 26 October 2017 and Pennycook searched systems for warrants and suspects.
Following her arrest, Pennycook claimed that Kennedy had ruined her life and said she was acting under duress.
But Pennycook, of Walsall, admitted one offence of misconduct in public office at Birmingham Crown Court.
