Drugs smuggled into Dame Phyllis Frost Centre linked to rape

An inmate smuggled drugs into Melbourne’s maximum security women’s prison in exchange for protection from heavies, with the contraband later linked to a rape in the jail.

The inmate who brought drugs into the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre had not been searched.

Drugs smuggled into a maximum security Melbourne women’s prison were linked to a rape and brutal assaults.

The Herald Sun has been told that an inmate who brought the drugs into the Dame Phyllis Frost Centre at Deer Park was not put through scanning equipment or searched on arrival.

The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU), which represents prison staff, says the drugs got in because not enough staff were trained in the use of scanning equipment likely to have found the contraband.

A CPSU summary of events sent to corrections chiefs states that a prisoner was coerced into bringing in the drugs in return for protection from prison heavies.

In the period after the drugs got into the jail, two prisoners entered a cottage area where four prisoners lived.

“One prisoner was raped and had her eye socket broken,” the summary said.

“The prisoner’s partner was forced to watch the rape and was stabbed with a syringe believed to contain blood and drugs.”

The union’s letter outlined how the two other cottage inmates were assaulted and the detainee who was raped was ordered to shower and told to clean up blood.

The Dame Phyllis Frost Centre at Deer Park is a maximum security women’s prison.

It was stated that 1.7 grams of an “illicit substance” was found on a prisoner later escorted to a medical facility.

A prisoner in the Goulburn unit was punched in the head in a separate attack attributed to the presence of the drugs.

The handling of an inmate who had a history of 120 incidents related to assaults and drugs was also raised by the CPSU.

That summary outlined concerns about the inmate, who was linked to the drug conflict, being earlier moved out of a management unit.

“Staff have previously raised concerns regarding this prisoner and others involving these sorts of moves and where they are housed. The prisoner and other prisoners involved are known standovers and heavies and are inappropriately housed,” the summary said.

A Department of Justice and Community Safety spokeswoman said Corrections Victoria has a zero-tolerance approach to the smuggling of drugs.

“Victoria’s prison system has one of the most extensive contraband detection regimes in Australia,” the spokeswoman said.

“We have measures in place to prevent drugs entering the system, including body scanners, X-ray machines, drone detection technology, specialist dog teams, CCTV, and highly trained prison officers.”

But CPSU secretary Karen Batt, in a letter to Corrections and Justice Services, said training of staff in use of scanning equipment and other broader search issues were of great concern.

Ms Batt said the ramifications of the events which followed the recent drug infiltration had been severe.

“These events have created serious trauma among our members with reports of staff struggling to cope and not sleeping after either dealing directly with these prisoners or being involved with the investigation,” Ms Batt wrote.

“The trauma to the prisoners involved and other prisoners through vicarious trauma is also of concern to our members.”