A former prison officer who smuggled cannabis inside her bra into a Young Offenders Institution in Thamesmead admitted she was doing it to make some extra cash.

Safak Bozkurt, 28, was found with 117 grams of cannabis inside her bra and four mobile phones, two charger cables and a number of SIM cards in her waistband.

Bozkurt, of Skinner Street in Islington, was caught during a routine staff search as they arrived to work at on July 12, 2016.

She had been employed as a prison officer since January 2015 and had been smuggling contraband into HMP Isis in Thamesmead without being caught for several months.

A former inmate at the prison had been paying her between £500 and £1,000 on each occasion.

In a police interview, she admitted that she had no excuse for her behaviour and that no pressure had been placed upon her to commit the offences.

She said that she simply saw it as an opportunity to make extra money.

Bozkurt pleaded guilty to two counts of smuggling contraband at Southwark Crown Court yesterday, April 24.

She was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment, suspended for two years, and ordered to carry out 300 hours of unpaid work.

Detective Constable Scott Pavitt, of the Met's London Prisons Anti-Corruption Team, was the officer who investigated the case.

He said: "This case clearly illustrates the danger that organised criminals present to prison officers who are tempted by financial gain.

“It is a clear example of a prison officer succumbing to manipulation by an inmate.

“The Met and Her Majesty's Prison Service will always deal robustly with any officer involved in corruption.”