Gangsters from Albania locked up in British jails are bragging about paying prison guards £2,000 for sex, according to a report. An Albanian former convict reportedly told a TikTok chat his fellow nationals "have f***** female prison officers for £2,000".

Jailed gangland killer Eugert Merizaj, serving a 32-year sentence for slaying a rival drug dealer, claimed to have "hooked up" a fellow inmate with a female prison guard.

Merizaj was hosting a live online chat from his jail cell about life in prison which was uncovered in an investigation carried out by The Sun.

He is reported by the same publication to have told viewers that he avoids having sex with prison staff, adding: "I do not want to get an extra 12 years."

The claim, which Express.co.uk has not been able to inependently verify, comes after a video was shared on social media allegedly showing a prison officer having sex with an inmate in a cell. There is no suggestion that incident is connected.

It did spark a police investigation after officers became aware of the video, which was reportedly filmed inside HMP Wandsworth.

Linda De Sousa Abreu, 30, of Fulham, south-west London, was charged with misconduct in public office, according to the Metropolitan police.

The charge states Ms De Sousa Abreu "wilfully and without reasonable excuse or justification misconducted" herself in "a way which amounted to an abuse of the public's trust in the office holder by engaging in a sexual act with a prisoner in a prison cell".

It is alleged to have happened at Wandsworth between June 26-28.

The mother was arrested at Heathrow Airport, the court heard, and was due to catch a flight to Madrid having notified the prison of her travel plans.

Ms De Sousa Abreu, who holds a Portuguese passport, was granted conditional bail, and is due to appear at Isleworth Crown Court on July 29.

Meanwhile, Britain's prison system this week appeared close to collapse, with Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood insisting the Government had "no option" but to release 5,500 prisoners early, with jails projected to be overflowing by September.

In a statement to the Commons on Thursday, Ms Mahmood said it was clear that meant there was only one way to "avert disaster".

She announced plans for the introduction of a temporary change in the law, with a statutory instrument laid down in draft form that inmates serving eligible standard determinate sentences will leave prison after serving 40 percent rather than 50 percent of their sentence in custody, with the rest on licence.