Prison officers sprayed with blood

Two prison staff are due to undergo tests after an inmate squirted them with his blood when they foiled a drug swap during a hospital visit.

It is not clear if any the blood went into either officers’ mouth or if they had any open cuts, but the two men will be medically assessed for possible transmission of blood-borne viruses, including HIV.

The assault took place at 1.10am yesterday at the Mater Hospital during an escort from Mountjoy Prison.