The staff of the Welsh prison HMP Park laughed at violent incidents with inmates, according to a series of messages leaked from their computer.
BBC reports that staff members at Bridgend Prison have been seen making jokes about self-harming incidents.
Messages were shared on social media, according to reports. G4S, the company that runs the prison said they had a zero tolerance policy for staff misconduct.
In one exchange an officer said “xxx opened up the door, and they smashed hm into the shower LOL”, and was responded with “Good!” I hope he was hurt too.”
Another person describes punching a prisoner after they were bitten, “so that there is some closure”, along with a laughing emoticon.
Staff are seen making fun of suicide risk in messages. One message reads: “He will tie a bag round his neck”, the reply is “Too Much Paperwork”. A third message states “Don’t need to do paperwork, if you pretend to not see it.”
On one thread an inmate who has serious mental issues is called “crackhead Jesus”.
In 2024, Parc had the highest death rate of any prison. The Ministry of Justice’s anti-corruption division is supporting a police investigation that has been ongoing into misconduct.
Four custody officers were arrested in September last year on suspicion of assaulting and misbehaving while performing their duties as public servants. This was after a number of reports. All four were released without charges.
G4S stated: “The majority of our employees are honest and hardworking.” We are committed to eradicating any wrongdoing.
Our staff is expected to treat all people with dignity and respect. We have zero tolerance for any behaviour by staff that does not meet our standards.
HMP Parc, one of the few prisons in Britain run by a private firm, has been under increasing pressure to conduct an independent investigation into its culture and operations.
In 2019, the Government launched a public investigation to investigate the mistreatment suffered by individuals at Brook House Immigration Removal Centre. This centre was operated by G4S for the Home Office.
In 2023, the report concluded that staff were able to abuse migrants verbally and physically because of a toxic work environment. It rejected the Home Office’s and G4S’s claims that this was primarily due to the behavior of a small group of staff. The report found that many staff showed little concern for the welfare of detainees, and others appeared to be desensitised to their vulnerability.
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