London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 22, 2026

Erlestoke Prison guard: Drug smuggler has jail term increased

Erlestoke Prison guard: Drug smuggler has jail term increased

A former prison guard who tried to smuggle crack cocaine into prison in her underwear has had her jail term increased by the Court of Appeal.

Hannah Gaves, 27, from Bristol, was found carrying it and cannabis on her way into work at Erlestoke Prison near Devizes.

She admitted a series of offences and was jailed for three years in August.

Lord Justice Davis ruled her sentence was "unduly lenient" and increased the term to four years and eight months.


Hannah Gaves smuggled cannabis into HMP Erlestoke


Gaves, of Butlers Close, St George, had pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply a Class A drug, possession with intent to supply a Class B drug and attempting to bring tobacco into prison.

The court heard Gaves had been working as a prison officer for just under a year when she was caught with the drugs on 27 January 2019.

CCTV footage showed her "spending a considerable period of time in a cell of a particular prisoner" and a decision was made to stop and search her.

When she was told she would be searched and was asked if she had any prohibited items, said "she answered, 'yes, weed and tobacco"'.

But the judge said: "That was not the whole truth because when she was searched, not only was a quantity of cannabis (found) ... in addition, and hidden in her underwear, was a lump of a white substance wrapped in cling film."


Cocaine was found concealed in Hannah Gaves' underwear


Gaves told police she felt she had "no option" and the unnamed individual who asked her to bring drugs into the jail "knew where she lived and had contacted her on social media".

But Lord Justice Davis said: "If threats are made to (prison officers) they know that their responsibility is to report that threat."

Increasing Gaves' sentence, Lord Justice Davis said the three-year term was "not simply lenient, it is undoubtedly unduly lenient".

In a statement after the hearing, Solicitor General Michael Ellis QC said: "Gaves intentionally smuggled contraband into prison with the intention of supplying dangerous drugs.

"She betrayed the trust inherent in her office."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Petrol Bombs Set Luxury Cars Alight Outside Birmingham Wedding as Police Hunt Three Men
Bitcoin Surges Toward $80,000 as Short Squeeze and ETF Inflows Ignite Crypto Rally
Prince Harry and Co-Claimants Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million Toward Daily Mail Publisher’s Legal Costs
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Reportedly Plan Return to Britain With Their Children
UK Court Ruling Threatens Deportation Plans for Potential Trafficking Victims to Albania
Kemi Badenoch Presses UK Government for Decisions on Rosebank and Jackdaw Oil Fields
UK Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Calls for Ban on Goods from Occupied West Bank
Andy Burnham Government to Place Civil Servants Directly in English Mayoral Offices
Met Office Warns Major El Niño Could Bring Stormier, Wetter Autumn to UK
UK Economy Gains Unexpected Momentum Ahead of Andy Burnham Government’s First Budget
Twenty-Nine US States Take Meta to Trial Over Alleged Child Addiction on Instagram and Facebook
Former Scottish National Party Executive Peter Murrell Jailed for Five Years Over £400,000 Embezzlement
Moderna and Merck's Personalized Cancer Vaccine Succeeds in Historic Late-Stage Melanoma Trial
Prince Harry and Meghan to Move Back to Britain With Their Children
England and Wales Have Fewer Than 1,800 Prison Places Left for Men
Royal Navy to Accelerate DragonFire Laser Deployment Against Growing Drone Threat
Northern Ireland Approves Five Hundred Million Pound Belfast Harbour Expansion
Great British Railways Takes Full Control of Avanti West Coast as Rail Nationalisation Reaches Final Stage
UK AI Safety Institute Calls for Mandatory Security Audits of Advanced AI Models
Scotland Secures Three Billion Pounds for Floating Offshore Wind Hub in Aberdeen
Government Overrides Local Councils to Approve Green Belt Housing Across Southern England
UK and EU Move Toward Mutual Recognition of Food Standards to Ease Cross-Channel Trade
Government Plans Multibillion-Pound Private Healthcare Expansion to Cut NHS Surgical Backlogs
Bank of England Signals Faster Rate Cuts as Inflation Falls Below the Two Percent Target
Suspected People Smuggler Arrested After Investigation Identified Him
Children's Doctors Warn That Vaping Can Lead Young People to Smoking
Hundreds of Thousands of Students Receive GCSE and Vocational Results Across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Here Is What Can Never Happen in Your Country: Taiwan Is Giving Money to All Its People Because It Collected Too Much Tax
UK Inflation Rises to 2.9% as Energy Bills Jump
UK Issues New Conduct Guide for Asylum Seekers on Consent and Respect
Moderna Shares Surge After Positive Personalized Skin Cancer Trial Results
UK Markets Watch US National Debt Surpass Forty Trillion Dollars
UK Broadcasters Urge Government to Invest in Digital Participation and Broadband
CVC Capital Partners and Standard Life Launch Two Billion Pound Pension Risk Transfer Venture
UK Private Sector Productivity Growth Accelerates in Second Quarter
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband Condemns Israeli E1 Settlement Tender
UK Watchdog Investigates Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School Over Hidden Fees
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Plan Move to Private Home Outside London
UK Retail Sentiment Improves as Summer Spending Boosts Consumer Confidence
UK Aid Cuts Draw Warnings From Charities Over Humanitarian Consequences
UK Financial Conduct Authority Issues Guidance for Motor Finance Redress Scheme
UK Met Office Launches Aviation Programme to Reduce Climate Impact of Persistent Contrails
Former UK Civil Service Chief Received Record 500,000 Pound Severance Payment
West Midlands to Bring Bus Network Under Public Franchising Model
UK Government Drops Plan to Relax Affordable Housing Requirements After Backlash
UK Reaffirms Military Support for Ukraine Despite Russian Hybrid Warfare Threats
UK Technology Sector Expands Nearly 8 Percent as Digital Industry Outpaces Wider Economy
UK Drought Threatens Harvests Across England and Wales as Food Inflation Risks Persist
UK Government Pledges 442 Million Pounds to End Rough Sleeping by Christmas
UK Government Signals Willingness to Reconsider Digital Services Tax Amid US Tariff Threats
×