A father's attempt to smuggle painkillers into prison to his son, a convicted murderer, was foiled by a crisp packet during a visit. Thomas McMahon, 64, admitted to bringing prohibited tablets into HMP Full Sutton in Yorkshire when he visited his son, Joseph Peers, on June 22 last year. The prison holds some of the country's most dangerous criminals.
How the Plot Unraveled
During the visit, staff noticed McMahon moving his mouth before placing something inside a crisp packet. Identical crisp packets were on the table and were rotated multiple times, which CCTV footage later revealed. Staff found 14 white, oval-shaped tablets inside the packet. Julia Baggs, prosecuting, told Hull Crown Court that custodial settings are rife with drugs, which are a high-value currency, and that transporting prohibited items into prison is serious, though this was not a large-scale operation.
McMahon's Explanation
After his arrest, McMahon claimed his son suffered from back and knee pain and that he was worried about him. The tablets were prescribed for pain relief but are often abused and sold on the black market. Prosecutors did not accept this explanation but did not challenge it. McMahon had 23 previous offences, including a drug-driving conviction in September 2023 after returning from Amsterdam due to stress from his son's murder trial. He had no prior convictions for drug possession or supply.
Billy Torbett, mitigating, said McMahon brought the drugs because his son was in pain from an injury, and the painkillers were previously prescribed to him for chronic pain but unused. He expressed remorse, acknowledging a significant error in judgment. The incident has emotional consequences, as McMahon is now banned from visiting his son.
Sentencing and Background
Recorder Taryn Turner stated that drugs in prisons fuel violence, intimidation, and debt. McMahon, of Dunchurch Road, Knotty Ash, received a six-month suspended prison sentence, 120 hours of unpaid work, and 15 days of rehabilitation activity. Joseph Peers, the getaway driver in the murder of Ashley Dale, was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 41 years in November 2023. On August 21, 2022, Ashley Dale, an environmental health officer, was shot in her home by James Witham as part of a plot to kill her boyfriend. Peers will be 70 before eligible for release.
