A teenage prison officer and a serving inmate have both admitted in court to engaging in a sexual relationship while he was incarcerated.
Guilty Pleas Entered at Crown Court
Alicia Novas, aged 19 from Raunds, Northamptonshire, and Declan Winkless, 30, pleaded guilty to multiple charges of misconduct in a public office at Northampton Crown Court. The offences took place at HMP Five Wells, a Category C prison near Wellingborough, between August and December 2024.
Novas, who appeared in the dock wearing a black outfit and glasses, and Winkless, who joined via videolink from HMP Swaleside in Kent, both accepted they had "wilfully misconducted" themselves in a serious abuse of the public's trust. The court heard that Novas provided her personal telephone number to the inmate and failed to report that he was in possession of a mobile phone and cannabis.
Series of Serious Offences Admitted
The pair admitted to a catalogue of further charges related to smuggling contraband into the prison. These included:
- Making an unauthorised transmission of an image or sound from within a prison.
- Conveying cannabis into HMP Five Wells.
- Conveying two mobile phones into the establishment.
- Making an unauthorised electronic transmission of an image relating to HMP Peterborough between December 2024 and March 2025.
Winkless, formerly of South Wigston, Leicestershire, also pleaded guilty to a seventh charge of possessing a device with a SIM card at HMP Five Wells without authority on 22 December last year.
Remand and Upcoming Sentencing
During the short hearing, both defendants spoke only to confirm their names and enter their pleas. The prosecutor did not outline the full facts of the case.
Novas, who had been on conditional bail, was remanded into custody immediately after pleading guilty. A woman in the public gallery was seen crying into a tissue as the decision was made.
Judge Rupert Mayo adjourned the case for sentencing. Both Alicia Novas and Declan Winkless will learn their fate at Northampton Crown Court on 5 January 2026.
