Surgery for inmate who hid phone internally

An inmate at Limerick Prison who concealed a mobile phone internally had to be rushed to hospital to have it surgically removed, a court heard.

Deirdre O’Sullivan, aged 26, of Fairhill, in Cork City, was yesterday sentenced to three months for possession of the phone at the jail on Mar 6 last year.

Outlining the facts of the case, Sergeant Michelle Leahy said the defendant approached prison officers at the prison and told them she had concealed the mobile phone “internally” and that she was unable to remove it.

The court was told O’Sullivan, who was serving a sentence in relation to a theft offence at the time, was immediately rushed to the Mid-Western Regional Hospital where she underwent surgery to have the mobile phone removed from inside her body.

Solicitor Sarah Ryan, representing O’Sullivan, said her client had lost her privileges at Limerick Prison for 30 days as a result of the incident.

“She lost phonecalls and other privileges, such as access to the shop,” said Ms Ryan, who urged the court to be as lenient as possible.

Ms Ryan said it was her client who had informed the authorities she was in possession of the mobile phone.

Convicting O’Sullivan, Judge Eamon O’Brien imposed a three-month jail sentence to be served concurrently with the sentence she was now serving.