A series of leaked messages show staff at Welsh prison HMP Parc laughing at violent encounters with inmates.
The BBC has seen messages showing staff at the prison in Bridgend making fun of self-harm incidents alongside other exchanges where officers appear to support inmates getting hurt.
The messages are reported to have been shared on social media last summer. G4S, which runs the prison, said it had a “zero tolerance” approach to staff misconduct.
In one exchange, an officer says “xxx opened the door and they smashed him into the shower lol”, and the response says “Good! I hope they hurt him too.”
Prison workforce
Another describes punching an inmate after being bitten “so there’s some closure”, alongside a laughing emoji.
Messages show staff making light of suicide risks, with one message reading: “He’ll tie a bag around his neck”, and the response saying “Too much paperwork.” A third message says “Don’t have to do paperwork if you pretend not to see it.”
In one thread, an inmate with serious mental health issues is described as “crackhead Jesus”.
Seventeen inmates died at Parc during 2024, more than any other prison. The Ministry of Justice’s anti-corruption unit is supporting an ongoing police investigation into misconduct.
Last September, four custody officers at Parc were arrested on suspicion of assault and misconduct in public office after there were reports of a series of incidents. They were all released without charge.
G4S said: “The vast majority of our staff are hardworking and honest. We are absolutely committed to rooting out any wrongdoing.”
“Our staff are expected to treat everyone with dignity and respect and we have a zero tolerance approach to dealing with any staff behaviour that falls short of our standards.”
HMP Parc is one of a handful of prisons in the UK to be operated by a private company, and has faced growing calls for an independent inquiry into its operations and culture.
In 2019, the government launched a public inquiry to investigate the mistreatment of individuals detained at Brook House immigration removal centre, which had been operated by G4S on behalf of the Home Office.
Its findings in 2023 concluded that a toxic culture allowed staff to physically and verbally abuse detained migrants, and rejected suggestions by the Home Office and G4S that the events primarily resulted from the behaviour of a small minority of staff. It found that staff often showed little regard for detainees’ welfare, and some appeared desensitised towards the vulnerabilities of detained people.
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